Seoul: The floor leader of the People Power Party (PPP) announced his resignation Thursday, as the conservative party is reeling from a defeat in the presidential election earlier this week. Rep. Kweon Seong-dong told a meeting of party lawmakers at the National Assembly that he is resigning to take responsibility for PPP presidential candidate Kim Moon-soo's defeat in Tuesday's election.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Kweon emphasized the need for the conservative bloc to start anew, stating, "We must start from scratch to rebuild the conservative bloc. I will start by stepping down as floor leader." He highlighted that the election defeat is "not merely a referendum on the martial law imposition or the impeachment of the president" but rather a "stern reprimand" over the internal divisions within the PPP. Kweon acknowledged his part in the party's shortcomings, saying, "As floor leader, I carry a significant share of the blame. I have no intention of avoiding it or making excuses."

In a related move, members of the PPP's emergency leadership committee also offered to resign en masse. The PPP's floor spokesperson, Rep. Seo Ji-young, announced the decision, indicating that members such as Rep. Lim Yi-ja and Kim Sang-hoon, the PPP's top policy chief, tendered their resignations at a general meeting of lawmakers at the National Assembly. However, Kim Yong-tae, the PPP's interim leader, did not clarify whether he intends to resign.

The election results were a blow to the PPP, with President Lee Jae-myung taking office on Wednesday after winning the presidential election on Tuesday with 49.42 percent of the vote against Kim Moon-soo's 41.15 percent.