The Democratic Party of Korea and the Joguk Innovation Party are putting great effort into winning votes ahead of the October 16 by-elections for basic local government heads. The results of this by-election carry significant weight not only for evaluating the leadership of each party's representative but also as a proxy battle to determine the dominant power in Honam.
According to the Democratic Party on the 24th, Representative Lee Jae-myung plans to visit Gokseong County in Jeollanam-do in the morning to listen to public sentiment on-site. Lee is expected to visit the Gokseong County branch of the Korea Senior Citizens Association and Seokgok Nonghyup, actively conveying his stance on the Yoon Seok-yeol administration's mismanagement and the theory of neglect toward Honam by the Democratic Party. Earlier, the Democratic Party leadership held an on-site supreme council meeting in Yeonggwang, Jeollanam-do, the previous day to support their candidates. The Democratic Party candidates for Gokseong County head and Yeonggwang County head are Cho Sang-rae and Jang Se-il, respectively.
Following this, Lee plans to visit Busan for an overnight stay from the afternoon of the same day to support Kim Kyung-ji, the Democratic Party candidate for Busan Geumjeong District head. On the 25th, he will hold an on-site supreme council meeting to explore election support measures, then officially enter the election campaign through an ethics pledge ceremony and policy agreement ceremony.
The reason Lee is closely monitoring the basic local government head elections is that this is the first election under the second-term leadership system, serving not only to solidify party leadership but also as a barometer for stable national governance. In particular, it is also a significant measure to respond to the Joguk Innovation Party's challenge in Honam, a Democratic Party stronghold. The Innovation Party recorded high support rates in Honam during the April general election and believes there is a possibility of winning this by-election. Before the on-site supreme council meeting in Yeonggwang the previous day, Lee said, "If the results come out somewhat strangely, the entire Democratic Party leadership system could face a crisis." This indicates that the election results carry considerable meaning despite being a small-scale by-election.
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is greeting citizens returning home for Chuseok at Yongsan Station in Seoul on the 13th. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@
The Joguk Innovation Party is competing in Honam and pressuring the Democratic Party over candidate unification in regions such as Busan.
Joguk Innovation Party leader stated on his Facebook on the same day, "The Busan Geumjeong District head election must be unified. We are waiting for the Democratic Party's official response regarding the method and procedure of unification." He emphasized, "The opposition must quickly achieve unification in Busan to win the Geumjeong District by-election, properly convey public sentiment, and stop the Yoon Seok-yeol administration's tyranny."
Although the Innovation Party outwardly emphasizes that the Democratic Party is not an adversary but a one team, it is actually considering unifying candidates under the Innovation Party in the Busan region. The leader said, "In Incheon Ganghwa, the Joguk Innovation Party will support the Democratic Party candidate, and in Busan Geumjeong, we have repeatedly proposed unification of candidates after public debates," but added, "Until now, (the Democratic Party) has given no response. Is this appropriate?" raising his voice.
While the Democratic Party is focusing on this election, it is maintaining some distance from the Innovation Party. Kim Min-seok, the Democratic Party's senior supreme council member, criticized the Innovation Party leader, saying, "You advocated for an icebreaker policy against the regime, but now you are focusing on establishing a foothold locally and entering the election," and added, "It is not a world where competition is suppressed by anyone, but in Busan, you dissed our party candidate as 'a candidate who won't win anyway,' which is inappropriate."
Cho Kuk, leader of the Cho Kuk Innovation Party, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 23rd. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@
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