With the party convention approaching, the race for a new leadership of the ruling People Power Party is heating up. President Yoon Suk Yeol is unlikely to issue a public endorsement, but contenders’ closeness with the president is considered a major factor that can sway the outcome.

Over the weekend, the presidential office and Na Kyung-won, four-time lawmaker and not a pro-Yoon contender for party’s chair, clashed over her remarks regarding government loans for young married couples.

At a press conference on Thursday, Na, who is serving as the vice chairperson of the Presidential Committee on Ageing Society and Population Policy, proposed offering long-term loans to newlyweds at a very low interest rate and writing off the loans in phases if they have children.

The presidential secretary for social affairs, Ahn Sang-hoon, dismissed Na’s remarks the next day, saying the proposal was her “personal opinion that has nothing to do with the administration’s policy.”

In response, Na said in a statement Sunday she “understands the president’s concerns.” “I made it clear at the press conference that it was only a suggestion that may or may not be developed into a policy,” she said.

“I should add that I think it is inappropriate for some to use this issue strategically in light of the possible competition for party chair in the upcoming convention.”

The ruling party’s advisor Lee Jae-oh said the open clash “may be the presidential office’s way of telling Na that she doesn’t have a chance as the party chair.”

Na is leading in recent polls against her rivals. In a Jan. 1 poll of 1,005 adults aged 18 and older, conducted by Next Research, she had the highest approval rating at 24.9 percent.

In other two polls by Metrix and Korea Research International in the last week of December, Na also came out as the most favored party chair candidate among the ruling party supporters, followed by Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo.

Ahn, who ran in last year’s presidential election as the central People Party candidate before joining candidacy with Yoon, is announcing his bid for the chair’s seat on Monday.

One of the more vocal criticisms of the ruling party’s so-called pro-Yoon faction is coming from its last chair Lee Jun-seok.

Lee, who is barred from returning to the party until January next year, has been rallying against his pro-Yoon rivals since his suspension last July.

“Why not just give them (pro-Yoon) extra points,” the former chair wrote in a Facebook post on Dec. 16 on the prospective candidates and the upcoming race.

Lee was suspended in July last year by the party’s ethics committee for apparently trying to cover up allegations he accepted sexual favors from a businessperson. The committee said the then-party chair “damaged the party’s dignity” with the alleged sexual bribery scandal.

In addition to the suspension, Lee was sent to prosecutors in October for falsely accusing a YouTube channel run by a former reporter and a lawyer -- who were the first to publicize the sexual bribery allegations -- of “spreading false information.”

In December 2021, Lee sued the YouTube channel for defamation, saying they published false allegations about him receiving sexual bribes. The YouTube channel in turn sued Lee for falsely accusing them of publishing falsehood.

Lee’s false accusation case being sent to prosecutors was seen as the police acknowledging there is some substance to the allegations of sexual bribery, for which the statute of limitations had already expired.

With Lee suspended, the party has been led by interim chair Rep. Chung Jin-suk for the past few months. While Lee had filed for an injunction to suspend the interim leadership that replaced him, the court turned it down in October.

Another contender vying for party chair is Yoo Seung-min, a onetime presidential candidate who has long been close to Lee.

“If someone who is a Yoon loyalist ends up becoming the party chair, that would not help the president at all in terms of his approval ratings,” he said in a Jan. 2 radio interview.

After losing in the primary for Gyeonggi Province governor last year, Yoo claimed he faced an unfair disadvantage competing against his challenger who he said was purportedly pro-Yoon.

People Power Party is set to pick its new leaders at the convention slated for March 8.