Jung Chungrae and Park Chandae Register as Party Leader Candidates
Emphasize Eradicating Insurrection and Strengthening Party Member Sovereignty
Unofficial War of Words from the Very First Day of the Leadership Race
Jung Chungrae: "Unity Is Lee's Role... I Will Become a Reformist Party Leader"
Park Chandae: "Both Unity and Reform Are the Shared Responsibility of Lee and the Democratic Party"
On July 10, the Democratic Party of Korea officially began its race for party leadership by accepting candidate registrations for the 8·2 National Convention’s party leader and Supreme Council member elections. Lawmakers Jung Chungrae and Park Chandae, both running for party leader, each appealed for support by pledging to help ensure the success of the Lee Jaemyung administration.
Jung and Park registered as party leader candidates at the Democratic Party’s central headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of July 10, and each presented their visions as party leader candidates through YouTube and a press conference, respectively.
At 9:30 a.m. that day, Jung held an online public briefing via YouTube and announced his ten key pledges for political reform and addressing intra-party issues. Jung’s ten innovation pledges included the establishment of a special committee to eradicate insurrectionist forces, immediate launch and completion before Chuseok of three major reform task forces, innovation in candidate nominations, and innovation in party member sovereignty. Jung stated, “As a reformist party leader, I will lay the foundation for the success of the Lee Jaemyung administration.”
Later, at 10:30 a.m., Park held a candidate registration press conference at the Party Member Zone on the second floor of the Democratic Party headquarters. Park pledged to pass a special law to end insurrection, strengthen party member sovereignty through increased participation, achieve an overwhelming victory in local elections, and overcome regionalism and extremism. He said, “The Democratic Party, which best understands President Lee Jaemyung’s philosophy, will take responsibility for completing state affairs through legislation and budgeting.”
The two candidates also engaged in a war of words outside the official campaign. During his YouTube broadcast, Jung said, “We are currently at war with insurrection. If this were the Joseon Dynasty, we would need leadership like that of King Taejong,” adding, “Beautiful rhetoric such as unity, stability, and cooperation should be left to the president; as for the party, we must continuously fight for reform legislation, remain vigilant, and fulfill all the duties of a party leader without hesitation or reservation.” In contrast, Park pointed out during his press conference, “Some say unity is the president’s job and the ruling party just needs to focus on reform. That is not correct. Unity must be created together by the president and the ruling party, and reform is also a shared responsibility of both the president and the ruling party.”
From the very first day of the full-fledged leadership race, both candidates are expected to focus on winning the support of party members and core supporters. Jung plans to visit Chungbuk and Daejeon on July 10 to hold meetings with metropolitan and basic council members as well as key party members, where he will present his vision as a party leader candidate and listen to members’ requests. He also plans to visit Hanwha Eagles Park in Daejeon, where a game between the Hanwha Eagles and Kia Tigers will be held. Park, after appearing on the YouTube program “Kim Eojun’s News Factory” in the morning, will hold an online shareholder meeting event at a restaurant in Yeouido, Seoul, to appeal for support from his core supporters.
As of the morning of July 10, only lawmaker Hwang Myungseon, a three-term former mayor of Nonsan, appears to be running unopposed for the Supreme Council election. Hwang held a press conference the previous day to announce his candidacy for the Supreme Council, pledging party member sovereignty, national sovereignty, and victory in local elections, and stated, “I will become the field commander of the Lee Jaemyung administration.”
If there are three or more candidates each for party leader and Supreme Council member, the Democratic Party will hold a preliminary primary on July 15. The main primaries will then be held in the following order: Chungcheong region on July 19, Yeongnam region on July 20, Honam region on July 26, the Seoul metropolitan area on July 27, and Seoul, Gangwon, and Jeju on August 2. The final joint speech event will take place at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, on August 2, and the overall results of the primaries will be announced on that day.
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