"Sovereignty Belongs to Citizens"...Lee Myungno, Gwangju City Council Member, Calls for Halt to Democratic Party Women's Special District

Raises Nomination Issues at National Assembly Press Conference
Calls for Ban on Strategic Nominations for Specific Groups and Change to Women's Special District

Lee Myungno, a member of the Gwangju City Council from the Democratic Party, called for intervention from the party leadership regarding the designation of Gwangju Seo-gu District 3 as a women's special district (strategic constituency), stating, "A structure where the sovereign is not the citizens keeps repeating itself."

Lee Myungno, Gwangju City Council member, speaking at a press conference held at the National Assembly Communication Office on the 15th.

At a press conference held at the National Assembly Communication Office on the afternoon of the 15th, Assemblyman Lee said, "Even if the result is that my eligibility to run is restricted, I will not leave the party or change constituencies," adding, "This appeal is not about personal interests, but about concerns for the future of the Democratic Party and youth politics."

Previously, the Democratic Party's Gwangju City Party Operations Committee designated Gwangju Seo-gu District 3 as a women's special district on December 20 of last year. According to Assemblyman Lee, during this process, a politically retaliatory cutoff was implemented that restricted the incumbent member's eligibility to run, on the grounds that the incumbent did not assist the city party chair in the general election primary. He also noted that he is the youngest metropolitan council member in Gwangju's history.

Assemblyman Lee stated, "To raise awareness of the injustice of this decision, I held two press conferences at the Gwangju City Council and one at the National Assembly Communication Office, and requested mediation from the party leadership by visiting the Supreme Council. I met with new Supreme Council candidates and delivered appeals, and also demanded that Representative Jeong Cheongrae ensure this issue is addressed by the restructured leadership."

However, he said that the situation has not changed so far. He claimed that Yang Bunam, the Gwangju City Party Chair, is continuing to push for the designation of the women's special district as planned, and that the party leadership, despite the Supreme Council's authority to coordinate party affairs, is not intervening, citing the matter as a delegated responsibility of the city and provincial parties.

Assemblyman Lee said, "The Gwangju City Party began preliminary candidate eligibility reviews on the 13th of this month, and with the deadline for applications on the 20th, the window for running in the local elections will close." He added, "I tried to resolve this quietly, but since there has been no progress, I determined that voicing a legitimate claim, even if it causes a stir, is a true expression of loyalty to the party."

On this day, Assemblyman Lee made a public request to Supreme Council members, including Representative Jeong Cheongrae, Han Byungdo, Lee Eonju, Hwang Myungseon, Seo Samseok, Park Jiweon, Kang Deukgu, Lee Sungyoon, and Moon Jeongbok.

First, he requested that before the deadline for the Gwangju City Party's preliminary candidate eligibility review, the Supreme Council issue a directive prohibiting all city and provincial parties from designating strategic constituencies or special districts for specific groups. He stated, "This is not an infringement on the autonomy of city and provincial parties, but an issue of political consistency and the expansion of suffrage," adding, "Even in Gwangju, nominations should be made with consideration for competitiveness in the general election."

Second, he argued that even if it is unavoidable to designate a special district, it should be designated as a 'women and youth special district,' not just a women's special district, in order to uphold both Article 8 (Realization of Gender Equality) and Article 9 (Status and Rights of Young Party Members) of the party constitution. He said, "By selectively applying the mandatory nomination rule of 30 percent, a well-intentioned system has become a tool to eliminate certain individuals."

Assemblyman Lee pointed out that a common issue in recent party controversies is "a structure in which sovereignty lies not with party members or citizens, but with regional party chairs," and added that this aligns with Secretary-General Cho Seungrae's policy of "prohibiting city and provincial party chairs from participating in nomination-related bodies."

He said, "Elections are a solemn process of transferring sovereignty to the people," and called for this local election to be an opportunity for the Democratic Party to become a more trusted party.