The ruling People Power Party(PPP) has decided to hold a party convention on March 8 to pick its new leadership.

PPP interim chief Chung Jin-suk revealed the date on Monday during a meeting of the party’s emergency leadership committee, saying the new leadership will be decided no later than March 12 even if a runoff vote is required.

The party will begin accepting registration from candidates for party chief and Supreme Council member posts from early February and hold joint TV debates from mid-February following cutoffs.

Under revised regulations to elect new party leadership, the PPP will pick solely based on votes cast by party members, scrapping the general public survey that made up 30 percent of the party's weighted voting system.

A runoff will be held between the two candidates with the highest number of votes should no candidate win an outright majority for a position.