The People Power Party (PPP) in Seoul has denied the application for re-admittance of Park Hee-young, the Mayor of Yongsan, who had previously left the party following criticism over his handling of the Itaewon tragedy. The party's membership review committee stated that the decision to deny his re-entry was made out of respect for the victims' families and a recognition of the political and moral responsibility associated with the tragedy. This decision was influenced by the recent return of representative Bae Hyun-jin to the position of head of the Seoul chapter of the party after the party's disciplinary court suspended a previous disciplinary action against him.

Park had been indicted for inadequate response during the Itaewon tragedy, which resulted in multiple fatalities, and subsequently left the PPP in early 2023. While he was acquitted at the first trial last year, the second trial was paused at the request of a special investigative committee reviewing the disaster. Park recently applied for re-admittance, hoping to run for re-election as Yongsan District Mayor in the upcoming local elections.

The PPP stated it is cautious about past decisions and does not want to repeat mistakes that led to significant losses, referring to previous elections where candidates had faced backlash for similar issues. The final decision regarding Park's application could be escalated to the central party leadership, which will reassess whether he should be readmitted to the party.