New GNP leader considered as nimble troubleshooter

SEOUL, July 4 (Yonhap) -- Hong Joon-pyo, the ruling Grand National Party (GNP)'s new leader, is a veteran politician with great eloquence, and recognized by most as a troubleshooter.
Hong, a four-term lawmaker who had long served as a prosecutor, made his political debut in 1996 by winning his first parliamentary seat in a Seoul constituency. He has since won three consecutive parliamentary elections.
Since then, Hong, 57, has assumed the party's key posts, including chiefs of the party's strategy committee and reform committee.
Hong was once known to be one of the closest confidants of President Lee Myung-bak, but has actually been in a fringe group in the party, staying away from the ruling party's mainstream factions.
From 2008 to 2009, Hong, serving as the GNP's floor leader, resolved some sticky issues such as factional feuds at the party, which gave him fame as a veteran politician, and emerged as the leader of a new faction in the party.
A native of Changryeong in the southeastern province of South Gyeongsang, Hong graduated from Korea University with a degree in law.