'The Minjoo National Innovation Council' Launched in June Last Year
50 Candidates Nominated in the April 10 General Election, 31 Elected
Kim Du-kwan: "'Pro-Myeong' Innovation Council Reminds Me of Hanahoe"
At the 8.18 National Party Members' Convention to elect the next leadership of the Democratic Party of Korea, an unexpected 'Hana Group controversy' erupted. Kim Du-kwan, a candidate for the Democratic Party representative, strongly criticized the 'Democratic National Innovation Council (Innovation Council),' which has emerged as the largest faction within the party, by comparing it to the 'Hana Group,' a private organization within the military. The Innovation Council is regarded as a pro-Lee Jae-myung (pro-Lee Jae-myung) faction organization advocating for a mass party.
On the 4th, ahead of a joint speech meeting in the Gwangju-Jeonnam region, Kim sent a message to the delegates. He stated, "It is no exaggeration to say that the fate of our party is currently controlled by the Innovation Council," adding, "They have created a structure that mobilizes 'fandom,' which has little experience in party activities, to decision-making that requires high-level political judgment." He further pointed out, "This means the Lee Jae-myung group has taken over," and criticized, "The current behavior, where a faction that can be called a private organization dominates the party's nationwide organization, is the first in the history of the Democratic Party."
On the morning of the 4th, at the Kim Dae-jung Convention Center in Seo-gu, Gwangju, Kim Du-kwan, the Democratic Party's candidate for party leader, is presenting his policy platform at the joint speech event for the Democratic Party's leader and Supreme Council member candidates. [Image source=Yonhap News]
The Innovation Council immediately rebutted. In a statement, the Innovation Council said, "It is insulting the political innovation achieved through the expectations and aspirations of party members and the proud history of the Democratic Party," and emphasized, "We hope Candidate Kim will immediately apologize to the party members, who are the owners of the Democratic Party." Kang Sun-woo, a candidate for Supreme Council member affiliated with the Innovation Council, pointed out on Facebook, "How can you attack our comrades as Jeon Du-hwan's Hana Group on the day of the party convention held in Gwangju, the heart of our Democratic Party?"
The Innovation Council was launched as an extra-parliamentary organization on June 4 last year. It advocates a mass party based on 'party member sovereignty.' At its launch, they stated, "The Democratic Party must change. First, we strongly urge incumbent lawmakers to engage in deep reflection and innovation. Despite holding 180 seats, the party missed the opportunity for candlelight reforms such as prosecutorial reform and media reform and failed to recreate the regime. We must acknowledge responsibility and reflect on this." Ahead of the April 10 general election, they led sensitive issues such as '50% replacement of incumbents' and 'reduction of the delegate system due to strengthening of the rights of party members,' increasing their presence.
Fifty candidates affiliated with the Innovation Council were nominated in the April 10 general election, accounting for 20% of the 254 constituencies. Among them, 31 were elected. After the election, lawmakers who were not members also joined the Innovation Council in forms such as 'cooperating lawmakers.' It has emerged as the largest faction within the Democratic Party with 40 members in the National Assembly alone. On June 2, they announced the launch of their second term, stating, "Our goal is to create the era of President Lee Jae-myung."
On April 29, at the National Assembly Members' Office Building, participants shouted slogans during the Democratic Party of Korea National Innovation Meeting's discussion on the general election evaluation and organizational outlook. From the left: elected representative Choo Mi-ae, lawmaker Woo Won-shik, Kang Wi-won, the party leader's political advisor, Jeong Seong-ho, and lawmaker Park Chan-dae. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@
However, the Innovation Council's performance at the 8.18 National Party Members' Convention was weaker than expected. In the preliminary election to select eight out of 13 candidates for Supreme Council member, only three candidates affiliated with the Innovation Council survived. The candidates currently in the main election are Jeon Hyun-hee (three-term, Seoul Jung-gu Seongdong-gu Gap), Min Hyung-bae (two-term, Gwangju Gwangsan-gu Eul), and Kang Sun-woo (two-term, Seoul Gangseo-gu Gap). As some regional party member voting results have been announced, the three lawmakers are currently ranked 4th, 5th, and 8th respectively. In the final election to select five members, Kang is struggling.
The Innovation Council also failed in all three attempts at the Gwangju City Party Chair election, which was their main focus. Kang, the Innovation Council's standing representative, ran against incumbent Yang Bu-nam (Gwangju Seo-gu Eul) for the Gwangju City Party Chair but was defeated. Yang received 65.8% of the votes, while Kang received 34.1%. Although the Innovation Council actively supported Kang, they could not surpass Yang, who was endorsed by incumbent lawmakers.
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