[Change the Election] ③ Lee Jung-mi, What Is the Solution to End the Two-Party System Causing Extreme Politics?

Interview with Lee Jung-mi, Leader of the Justice Party
Voters Unhappy Due to Political Polarization
Principles of Proportionality and Representation Must Be Maintained

Editor's NoteEditor's Note - As the general election approaches next year, discussions on electoral system reform have intensified in the political sphere. Asia Economy explores the problems of the current electoral district system and seeks reasonable improvement measures through interviews with stakeholders involved in the ongoing electoral system reform discussions.

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] "Voters, caught in doubts and anxieties about whether the person they want to vote for can survive in a winner-takes-all structure, end up being forced to make a choice, which is very unfortunate."

Lee Jeong-mi, leader of the Justice Party, said this in a recent interview with Asia Economy reflecting on the last general election. In the 21st general election, she received 18.4% of the vote in Yeonsu-gu B district of Incheon, finishing third. Yeonsu-gu B was a closely contested area with a 2.29 percentage point (2,893 votes) gap between first and second place, and a recount was conducted after the election. She recalled that during her campaign, supporters she met shed tears and said, "I support you but cannot vote for you (to prevent another candidate's victory)." She said she still cannot forget how the supporters could not look the candidate in the eye. For Lee, who had hoped to win, finishing third was inevitably disappointing.

However, in this interview, she was reluctant to connect her past election experience directly to electoral district reform. She said that constituency elections are ultimately challenges that candidates must overcome themselves. Lee stated, "I do not want to talk about past elections blaming the system, but I clearly point out that voters have been left to suffer for too long in situations where they have to make other choices to prevent certain people from winning."

Lee agrees on the need for electoral district reform due to the polarized political landscape. She pointed out, "Diversity should be expanded and polarization overcome, but politics is going completely in the opposite direction," adding, "Rather, diversity is shrinking and polarization is becoming more severe." She diagnosed, "As we have gone through the 19th, 20th, and 21st National Assemblies, hostile confrontations have worsened, and support bases have strongly consolidated at both extremes, creating a vicious cycle."

Lee Jung-mi, Leader of the Justice Party. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

She identified the de facto two-party system as the cause of this vicious cycle. According to Lee, the result has been 'politics without compromise' and 'lack of coordination ability.' She said, "Because it is essentially a two-party system, there is no dialogue or compromise," and criticized, "Each side holds a majority of seats and says, 'I will handle everything myself,' refusing to acknowledge the other side and acting independently."

Lee expressed concern, "Looking at the current National Assembly, the legislative power is held by the Democratic Party of Korea, and the executive power by the Yoon Seok-youl administration, resulting in a situation where they exercise veto power against each other," adding, "Ultimately, the people suffer the most." In this process, the role of minority parties like the Justice Party has diminished further. She emphasized, "In the 20th National Assembly, neither the ruling nor opposition parties held a majority, so the Justice Party played a certain casting vote role. Although small in number, if we made decisions that met the people's expectations, even the Democratic Party, as the ruling and largest party, could not ignore it. This shows that the way the National Assembly is composed can change how politics operates."

Lee believes that the political landscape, disguised as a two-party system, must change for social conflicts and interest adjustments to be possible. She said, "Even within the People Power Party, there is diversity ranging from former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min to former Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, and the Democratic Party is in a similar situation," adding, "Each party creates bills as an alibi to show they are reformist parties, but without real power, party consensus does not form." She explained that social conflicts are only superficially reflected in politics because parties only pretend to make efforts.

Lee said, "The most important function of the National Assembly is to represent many stakeholders, bring their voices, mediate conflicts, and find compromises, but conflicts are not even properly revealed," adding, "A structure must be created where several parties can bring these issues to the Assembly as party positions and discuss how to resolve conflicts so that politics can solve social conflicts." To change politics, the two-party system must be broken, and the electoral system must be changed.

Lee Jung-mi, Leader of the Justice Party. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

The Justice Party has proposed an election law (led by Justice Party floor leader Lee Eun-ju) centered on introducing a mixed-member proportional representation system in the ongoing National Assembly discussions on the electoral district system. However, it holds a flexible stance on specific electoral district arrangements. Lee explained, "As long as the principles of proportionality and expanded representation are maintained, we hope to take even one step forward from the current electoral system," adding, "The Justice Party's position is to lead efforts to reach a better agreement through the National Assembly's Political Reform Special Committee and the bipartisan Political Reform Parliamentary Group."

However, she emphasized that the principle of introducing a mixed-member proportional system must be maintained. Regarding concerns about the mixed-member proportional representation system due to satellite party issues, she said, "It's like being afraid to make kimchi because of maggots," adding, "Both the People Power Party and the Democratic Party should reflect on satellite parties and simply stop doing that." Regarding institutional solutions, she said, "If all parties are listed on the party-list ballot regardless of whether they field proportional representation candidates, satellite parties will not have as much influence as they did in the last general election."