'7-Month Party Leader' Becomes Reality... Democratic Party Calls for Revision of Election Rules

Lee Nak-yeon, the elected member of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending the 'Post-Corona Era Untact Industry Strategy Forum' held at the National Assembly on the 13th, delivering a greeting./Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] As Lee Nak-yeon, Chair of the COVID-19 National Crisis Overcoming Committee, and former lawmaker Kim Boo-kyum are becoming likely candidates for the party leadership, there is growing concern about revising the party leadership election regulations. This is because if a presidential candidate holds the party leadership, the 'party leadership and presidential candidacy separation rule' allows them to maintain the representative position for only seven months.

According to the Democratic Party on the 1st, a National Convention Preparation Committee led by lawmaker Ahn Kyu-baek has been formed, and preparations for the convention have officially begun. The preparation committee will decide on the convention format, including the schedule for registering candidates for party leader and Supreme Council member elections, as well as whether to hold nationwide regional primaries. The Democratic Party's national convention separates the elections for party leader and Supreme Council members.

Regarding the party leadership, candidates likely to run include Chair Lee, as well as lawmakers Hong Young-pyo and Woo Won-shik. If lawmaker Kim Boo-kyum also confirms his candidacy, the convention is expected to become a preliminary battle for the presidential election.

Currently, there is significant concern within the party about the possibility of Chair Lee and lawmaker Kim being elected as representatives, given their strong prospects for presidential candidacy. According to the 'party leadership and presidential candidacy separation' rule, they must resign from the representative position by March next year, one year before the presidential election. Additionally, under the regulation that "the term of the party leader and Supreme Council members lasts until the next National Delegate Convention elects a new party leader," Supreme Council members may also have to resign together.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

For this reason, voices calling for revision of the national convention (Jeon-dae) rules are growing louder within the party. A Democratic Party lawmaker said, "There can be no vacancy in the leadership of a party that achieved a great victory in the general election," adding, "It is urgent to establish a plan to maintain stable leadership to ensure the continuity of the ruling party's policies."

Based on this public opinion, various proposals related to changing the convention rules are currently being suggested within the party. One prominent proposal is to guarantee a two-year term for Supreme Council members, who are elected separately from the party leader. If the party leader steps down in March next year, the Supreme Council members would remain in their positions, and only the replacement leader would be elected through a 'one-point' convention. It is reported that even Chair Lee instructed the party secretariat to seek legal advice on such a plan. However, if this plan is implemented, the party risks criticism for abandoning principles to support a specific presidential candidate.

Another proposal is to return to a 'pure collective leadership system,' where Supreme Council members are elected simultaneously with the party leader. This would allow the runner-up to succeed the party leader, preventing leadership vacancies. In fact, Ahn, the head of the convention preparation committee, reportedly mentioned the need to change the leadership system, saying, "It is not good for the ruling party, which must support stable governance, to hold another convention within a few months." In this case, competition for the 2nd and 3rd place Supreme Council member positions could become as intense as the battle for party leadership.