'Former Prime Ministers under Moon Administration' Jeong Seyeon and Kim Boo-kyum Breakfast Meeting: "Concerns over Democratic Party Nomination Controversies"

Former Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun [Image source=Yonhap News]

It has been confirmed that former Prime Ministers Jeong Se-gyun and Kim Boo-kyum held a breakfast meeting on the 24th.

According to political circles, they had breakfast near Gwanghwamun in Seoul that morning and shared concerns regarding the nomination controversies within the Democratic Party of Korea. Former Prime Ministers Jeong and Kim reportedly said, "As we have been worried, problems have arisen over the nominations, which is very concerning." They also confirmed remarks such as, "The party must handle and manage this well. If such issues accumulate, the voices of groups raising these problems will inevitably grow louder."

On the 22nd, the Democratic Party's Central Committee's Appeals Review Committee notified former Siheung Mayor Kim Yoon-sik and former Goyang Mayor Choi Sung, who had been judged 'ineligible' in the nomination screening and filed appeals, that their appeals were 'dismissed.' Former Mayor Kim had been preparing to run in the constituency of Cho Jung-sik, the Secretary-General and a key figure of the pro-Lee Jae-myung faction (Gyeonggi Siheung-eul), while former Mayor Choi had been preparing to run in the constituency of first-term pro-Lee lawmaker Han Jun-ho (Gyeonggi Goyang-eul).

Additionally, the two former prime ministers reportedly shared concerns during the meeting about former party leader Lee Nak-yeon's recent official announcement of forming a new party. However, regarding the harsh criticism within the party toward Lee's new party formation move, it is known that they shared the view that "Lee, as a senior figure of the party, should not be attacked with excessive language." They also reportedly agreed on the importance of "uniting the party to achieve victory in next year's general election."

The schedule for a meeting among the 'three prime ministers' of the Moon Jae-in administration (Lee Nak-yeon, Jeong Se-gyun, and Kim Boo-kyum) has not been finalized. Sources from both sides stated, "The two former prime ministers only exchanged general remarks such as 'If necessary, we can meet and persuade former leader Lee; let's see how the situation develops going forward.'"