Democratic Party-Open Democratic Party Merger Sparks Presidential Candidates' Debate: "Must Do" vs "Must Not"

Nine candidates who have completed registration as preliminary candidates for the Democratic Party of Korea's presidential election attended the Fair Election and Gender Equality Pledge Ceremony and National Interview Press Day held at the Glad Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul on the 1st, posing with action cameras for Song Young-gil, the party leader. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jin-young] On the 1st, presidential candidates presented different solutions regarding the possibility of a merger between the Democratic Party of Korea and the Open Democratic Party.

At the Press Day held at the Glad Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul, in the morning, when asked about a merger with the Open Democratic Party, former Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun stated, "I support the merger because it will help in the re-creation of the administration."

In response, Representative Park Yong-jin expressed opposition, saying, "Former Prime Minister Chung and I have different thoughts." Park said, "If we started with different party platforms and policies, it is right to follow the path promised in the general election," adding, "Practically, it is also inappropriate. If the Democratic Party's agenda goes to the subcommittee for agenda coordination in the standing committee, wouldn't it be much smoother for the Open Democratic Party to take the opposition party's standing committee seat in the National Assembly operation?"

Former Democratic Party leader Lee Nak-yeon said, "When I was the leader, I once explored integration. During the by-elections, we chose candidate unification over integration," adding, "But now, there is the urgent task of re-creating the administration. We need to join forces, so it is time to discuss integration."

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