Democratic Party to Hold Lawmakers' Meeting to Discuss Primary Postponement... Extreme Confrontation Inevitable

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Cheol-eung] The Democratic Party of Korea has decided to determine whether to postpone the primary election on the 22nd. Although the issue was discussed at a closed supreme council meeting on the 20th, no conclusion was reached, and they plan to hold a discussion by gathering all the party members. Since the leadership is unable to make a decision and the entire assembly of members will hold a discussion, this is unlikely to be welcomed by Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung, and strong opposition from members supporting Lee is expected.

On the 20th, after the supreme council meeting, Democratic Party senior spokesperson Ko Yong-jin briefed, "Regarding the Democratic Party's presidential primary schedule, there was a discussion about the request to hold a general assembly meeting made by 66 lawmakers on the 18th," adding, "As a result, it was decided to hold a general assembly on the morning of the 22nd to fully listen to opinions."

He continued, "Like the real estate general assembly, opinions for and against will be heard, followed by a supplementary free discussion. The general assembly will have a set time for discussion, and afterwards, the supreme council will reconvene for further discussion."

Democratic Party leader Song Young-gil briefly stated, "We need to gather consensus."

According to the party constitution, the presidential candidate must be selected at least 180 days before the election day, but in cases of significant reasons, the party affairs committee can decide otherwise. While candidates other than Governor Lee are requesting a postponement citing COVID-19 and other 'significant reasons,' Lee, who leads in various polls within the ruling party, insists on adhering to the '180 days prior' rule.

Although the party affairs committee has the authority according to the party constitution, the leadership has decided to sufficiently gather opinions through a general assembly. The general assembly is a discussion process, not a decision-making process. Spokesperson Ko also mentioned, "Leader Song Young-gil has met with nine presidential candidates in person and contacted three others by phone regarding the primary."

Meanwhile, on the same day, the Democratic Party supreme council appointed five-term veteran lawmaker Lee Sang-min as the chairman of the central party election commission. Yoon Kwan-seok, the secretary-general, was appointed ex officio as the special committee chair for organizational strengthening, and lawmaker Min Byung-duk was appointed as vice-chair.

It was reported that lawmaker Kang Hoon-sik will serve as the co-head of the presidential primary joint planning team, while other team leaders have yet to be decided.