Preliminary Primary for Opposition Party Supreme Council Members, 8 Candidates Including Kim Min-seok, Jeon Hyun-hee, and Lee Eon-ju Pass

Han Junho, Kang Seonwoo, Min Hyungbae, Kim Byungju, and Jeong Bongju Passed

Among the candidates for the Supreme Council member position in the Democratic Party's August 18th party convention, eight, including Representatives Kim Min-seok, Jeon Hyun-hee, and Lee Eon-ju, passed the preliminary primary on the 14th.

Lee Gae-ho, Chairperson of the Central Party Election Commission, announced the preliminary primary results at the National Assembly Library on the same day.

In addition to the multi-term Representatives Kim, Jeon, and Lee, re-elected Representatives Han Jun-ho, Kang Seon-woo, Min Hyung-bae, and Kim Byung-joo, as well as former Representative Jeong Bong-ju, who is outside the National Assembly, advanced to the final round. Five candidates, including first-term Representative Lee Seong-yoon, Park Jin-hwan, Standing Committee member of the Democratic Party National Innovation Council, Mayor Choi Dae-ho of Anyang, Deputy Spokesperson Kim Ji-ho, and Cheongju City Council member Park Wan-hee, were eliminated in the preliminary primary.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

This preliminary primary reflected 50% votes from central committee members and 50% from party members with voting rights. Until now, the preliminary primary was conducted solely based on 100% votes from central committee members, but from this time, party members with voting rights participated in the voting.

Among party members with voting rights, about 380,000 out of approximately 1,242,000 total electorate participated, recording a turnout rate of 30.6%. Among the central committee electorate, 327 out of 395 members, corresponding to 82.78%, voted.

For the party leader election, since only three candidates?former leader Lee Jae-myung, former Representative Kim Du-kwan, and Kim Ji-soo, head of the Korea Peninsula Future Economy Forum?ran, no separate preliminary primary was held. Previously, the Democratic Party decided to hold a preliminary primary to select three final candidates only if there were four or more candidates for the party leader election.

The Democratic Party will hold nationwide sequential primaries starting with the Jeju Provincial Party and Incheon City Party on the 20th, and will finally elect the leader and five Supreme Council members at the party convention on the 18th of next month.