A new conservative party led by eight lawmakers who left the minor opposition Bareunmirae Party held their first supreme council meeting on Monday.

Reps. Yoo Seong-min, Ha Tae-keung, Oh Shin-hwan and five others announced the launch of the party, tentatively named the New Conservative Party, on Sunday, vowing to represent younger, reform-minded conservatives. 

“The New Conservative Party has set sail for the rebuilding and revival of conservatives, not a division or failure of conservatives,” Ha, one of the party’s eight co-chairpersons who is the primary chair this month, said in a meeting.

Established less than four months ahead of the April 15 parliamentary elections, the new party is the fourth-largest party in the 295-member National Assembly after the ruling Democratic Party (129 seats), Liberty Korea Party (108 seats) and the Bareunmirae Party (20 seats).

The launch of the new party comes as Ahn Cheol-soo, co-founder of the Bareunmirae Party, announced last week his plan to return to politics after a yearlong hiatus.

The Bareunmirae Party was formed in February 2018 through a merger of the minor central-left People’s Party, co-founded by Ahn, and the center-right Bareunmirae Party which was headed by Yoo.

Yoo defected from the predecessor of the Liberty Korea Party following the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye.

By Kim So-hyun (sophie@heraldcorp.com)