Lee Jaemyung, Democratic Party Leader Candidate: "With 90% of the Cumulative Votes, I Feel a Great Responsibility"

Lee Jaemyung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, recorded a cumulative vote rate of over 90% in the online voting for party members to elect the party leader.

In the seventh Gyeongnam primary held at the Changwon Convention Center on the afternoon of the 27th, candidate Lee received 10,760 votes, achieving an online party member vote rate of 87.22%.

Candidate Kim Dugwan, who previously served as the governor of Gyeongnam and the provincial party chairman, received 1,439 votes with a vote rate of 11.67%, while candidate Kim Jisoo received 137 votes, resulting in a vote rate of 1.11%.

Lee Jae Myung, the Democratic Party of Korea's presidential candidate, is answering questions from reporters after completing the primary election in the Gyeongnam region.
Photo by Lee Seryeong

From the first regional primary in Jeju, followed by Incheon, Gangwon, Daegu-Gyeongbuk, and now the Busan-Ulsan-Gyeongnam primary, Lee's cumulative vote rate over these seven rounds has reached 90.89%. Kim Dugwan's cumulative vote rate stands at 8.02%, and Kim Jisoo's is 1.09%.

After the Gyeongnam primary results were announced, Lee spoke to reporters regarding Kim Dugwan's remarks at the Busan joint campaign speech, where he said, "A small group of radical Gaeddal (Daughters of Reform) have taken over the Democratic Party."

Lee commented, "I believe this shows the diversity and the breadth of the Democratic Party. People can have different opinions as much as they want."

Regarding the cumulative vote rate exceeding 90%, he said, "I believe the party members are entrusting me with a great responsibility, and I feel a strong sense of duty."

Democratic Party candidates for party leader Jisoo Kim (second from left), Dugwan Kim, and Jaemyung Lee stand on stage together at a joint campaign speech tour in the Gyeongnam region, holding hands.
Photo by Seryeong Lee

Earlier, at the Busan joint campaign speech, candidate Kim Dugwan pointed out, "A small group of radical Gaeddal within the party have taken over the Democratic Party. Do you think we can win the next local and presidential elections?" He added, "We need to reflect seriously on the fact that the Democratic Party's approval rating is 11 percentage points lower than the People Power Party in polls."