On Feb. 2, People's Party was officially launched with 17 lawmakers. The new party held an inauguration ceremony in Daejeon and vowed to make a strong centrist party. "We are launching the party to bring back the tradition of centrist politics," Han Sang-jin, co-chair of the preparatory committee said during an inauguration ceremony. "We will work on reforming politics while focusing efforts on narrowing the income gap, improving national security, and protecting the public," he added. The new party is expected to change the political landscape characterized by the rivalry between the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition MPK and realign the opposition bloc ahead of the general election slated for April 13.