[Politics, That Day...] On the Brink of Disaster, Moon Jae-in-Kim Jong-in 'Gugidong Meeting'

Democratic Party's Nomination Turmoil One Month Before 20th General Election, Controversy Over Kim Jong-in's Resignation Intensifies
Democratic Party Leadership Makes Efforts to Persuade Kim Jong-in, Who Withdraws Refusal to Perform Party Duties...

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Jeong-min]

Editor's Note‘Politics, That Day...’ is a series that looks back on Korean politics through the ‘recollection of memories’ related to notable scenes, events, and figures.

Former Emergency Committee Chairman of the Democratic Party, Kim Jong-in. Photo by Asia Economy DB

The Democratic Party of Korea experienced a day of chaos in the face of politician Kim Jong-in's decision. It was a precarious situation that could have easily led to political catastrophe. What happened to the Democratic Party on March 22, 2016?

With less than a month remaining before the 20th general election, the biggest concern for both ruling and opposition parties was the candidate nomination process. The fate of many politicians depended on the nomination results. Settling nomination disputes was fundamental to winning the election.

If controversies surrounding nominations spread before the election, defeat was almost certain. At that time, politician Kim Jong-in was serving as the head of the Democratic Party’s Emergency Response Committee.

As Kim Jong-in, who was supposed to lead the election campaign, refused to perform party duties, the Democratic Party was in a somber mood. Various analyses emerged regarding his actions, ranging from viewing it as a political brinkmanship tactic to a strategic move to shake up the political landscape.

What was clear was that the Democratic Party was in a crisis. Kim Jong-in’s visible anger was related to the nomination issue. The proportional representation nominations for the 20th general election, which Kim Jong-in had initially planned, were overturned during the Democratic Party Central Committee voting process.

Internal criticism arose accusing Kim Jong-in of ‘old ambition’ over the issue of assigning him the first male proportional representation spot, which was the second overall proportional representation slot. This criticism reached Kim Jong-in’s ears and became another factor that unsettled him.

On March 22, 2016, reporters were waiting for Kim Jong-in, the representative of the Democratic Party's emergency committee, in front of his residence in Jongno-gu, Seoul. On that day, Kim was scheduled to return to party duties at the emergency committee meeting held at 11 a.m., but suddenly postponed the meeting to 3 p.m.

Rumors spread that Kim Jong-in might resign. Various politicians connected to him, including the party leadership, made efforts to persuade him. Kim Jong-in’s ambiguous responses caused anxiety among Democratic Party members.

On March 22, amid a tense situation, a ‘relief pitcher’ hurriedly flew to Seoul from Gyeongnam. It was former party leader Moon Jae-in, who was regarded as the party’s political major stakeholder.

Former leader Moon Jae-in visited Kim Jong-in’s residence in Gugi-dong, Seoul. He tried to quell the controversies surrounding the proportional representation nominations and Kim Jong-in’s ranking on the list. He persuaded Kim Jong-in repeatedly to restore his political pride.

After meeting with Moon Jae-in at his Gugi-dong home, Kim Jong-in attended the Democratic Party Emergency Response Committee meeting.

Although he returned to party duties, speculation that Kim Jong-in might resign as party leader did not subside. Democratic Party officials watched the situation with unease. Emergency Response Committee members including Park Young-sun, Woo Yoon-geun, Pyo Chang-won, and Kim Byung-kwan visited Kim Jong-in’s Gugi-dong residence on the night of March 22.

It was essentially a political apology visit. All committee members except Kim Jong-in expressed their intention to resign to take responsibility for the nomination turmoil. They brought a list including Kim Jong-in’s name as the second proportional representation candidate to Gugi-dong.

The reason why the Democratic Party leadership and former leader Moon Jae-in worked hard to win Kim Jong-in’s favor was not only because they calculated that the election would be difficult without him, but also because they feared that his resignation could cause a political fatal blow to the Democratic Party.

The political negotiation leverage was in Kim Jong-in’s hands. Moon Jae-in and other Democratic Party figures had no choice but to wait for Kim Jong-in’s decision.

Politician Kim Jong-in ultimately decided to return to party duties and retain his position as party leader.

The Democratic Party was able to avoid the worst-case scenario. However, the aftermath of the Kim Jong-in resignation controversy was not easily resolved. Analyses of the results of the 20th general election in 2016 vary.

The Democratic Party won 123 seats, surpassing the Saenuri Party’s 122 seats to become the largest party. The election, which was expected to be a landslide victory for the Saenuri Party, produced an unexpected outcome. Some analyses credit Kim Jong-in’s political last-ditch effort for the Democratic Party becoming the largest party in the National Assembly.

On the other hand, there is a contrasting analysis that the nomination controversy, which intensified when the party could have won more seats, led to voter defection. Although the Democratic Party became the largest party in the National Assembly, it suffered a crushing defeat in its political stronghold of Honam due to the rise of the People’s Party. The debate over the political gains and losses of the Kim Jong-in resignation controversy continues to this day.