| Korea Independence Party | |
| Native Name: | 한국독립당 韓國獨立黨 |
| Founder: | Jo So-ang |
| Founded: | 1928, in Shanghai, Republic of China |
| Dissolved: | 1970 |
| Headquarters: | Shanghai, Republic of China (1928–1945) Seoul, South Korea (from 1945) |
| Wing1 Title: | Armed wing |
| Wing1: | Korean Independence Army |
| Country: | South Korea |
| Hangul: | 한국독립당 |
| Hanja: | 韓國獨立黨 |
| Rr: | Hanguk Dongnipdang |
| Mr: | Han'guk Tongniptang |
The Korea Independence Party (KIP;) was a political party in South Korea.
The party was established in Shanghai by Kim Koo in 1928, uniting a faction of conservative members of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea headed by Kim.[1] When Kim was able to return to Korea in 1945, the KIP began operating in the country. Kim was initially supportive of Syngman Rhee, 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 | Candidate | Votes | % | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948 | Kim Ku | 13 | 6.67 | ||
| 1967 | 232,179 | 2.10 |
| Election | Leader | Votes | % | Seats | Position | Status | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constituency | Party list | Total | +/– | ||||||
| 1950 | 17,745 | 0.25 | new | 10th | |||||
| 1960 | 26,649 | 0.29 | 5th | ||||||
| 1963 | 128,162 | 1.38 | 12th | ||||||
| 1967 | 240,936 | 2.22 | 6th | ||||||