The Korea Independence Party (KIP; ) was a political party in South Korea.

History

The party was established in

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

by Kim Ku in 1928, uniting a faction of conservative members of the

Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea The Korean Provisional Government (KPG), formally the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea (), was a Korean government-in-exile based in Republic of China (1912–1949), China during Korea under Japanese rule, Japanese rule over K ...

headed by Kim.Haruhiro Fukui (1985) ''Political parties of Asia and the Pacific'', Greenwood Press, p671 When Kim was able to return to Korea in 1945, the KIP began operating in the country. Kim was initially supportive of

Syngman Rhee Syngman Rhee (; 26 March 1875 – 19 July 1965), also known by his art name Unam (), was a South Korean politician who served as the first president of South Korea from 1948 to 1960. Rhee was also the first and last president of the Provisiona ...

, but a dispute over holding separate elections in South Korea (Kim was opposed, Rhee was for) led to a split and the party did not participate in the 1948 parliamentary elections in South Korea. However, Kim was a candidate in the indirect presidential elections in July 1948, losing heavily to Rhee. When Kim was assassinated in 1949, the party went into a sharp decline. It participated in the 1950 parliamentary elections, but received only 0.3% of the vote, failing to win a seat. It received the same vote share in the 1960 elections, again failing to win a seat. It nominated as its candidate for the May 1967 presidential elections; he finished fifth in a field of six candidates with 2.1% of the vote. Despite increasing its vote share to 2.2% in the June 1967 parliamentary elections, the party remained seatless.

Election results

President

Vice President

Legislature

House of Representatives

House of Councillors

References

{{South Korean political parties 1928 establishments in China 1970 disestablishments in South Korea Defunct political parties in South Korea Confucian political parties History of Confucianism Conservative parties in South Korea Hongik Ingan Korean Confucianism Korean nationalist parties Paternalistic conservatism Political parties disestablished in 1970 Political parties established in 1928 Social democratic parties in Korea Three Principles of the People Organizations of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea