Will the Democratic Party's Recruited Talent Be Used for 'Assassin Candidacy' to Replace Members Due to Proportional Representation Quota Shortage?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] As the Democratic Party of Korea's first round of talent recruitment for the general election nears its final stage, interest is growing in how these talents will be utilized.

A Democratic Party official said in a phone interview with Asia Economy on the 7th regarding the nomination of recruited talents for the general election, "The verification of candidates has just been completed, and interviews have not yet started, so it is difficult to talk about nominating recruited talents. We are reviewing ways to utilize them in the general election by comprehensively considering their backgrounds, careers, and competitiveness in their regions."

Currently, four main utilization plans for the recruited talents are being discussed: ▲proportional representation strategic nomination ▲participation in proportional representation primaries ▲district strategic nomination ▲participation in district primaries.

Until now, most recruited talents have generally run as proportional representation candidates. However, due to the introduction of the semi-linked proportional representation system in this general election, the number of proportional seats the Democratic Party can secure is only about seven. With Professor Choi Hye-young of Gangdong University, the first recruited talent, expected to be nominated as number one on the proportional list, it is anticipated that only one or two more will be placed on the proportional list. Ultimately, the rest will inevitably run in electoral districts.

These recruited talents are likely to be actively used for 'incumbent turnover.' This means promoting turnover by having them compete in primaries against the bottom 20% of incumbent lawmakers through so-called 'assassin nominations.'

This plan is largely analyzed as a way to pressure the 'bottom 20%' lawmakers. Initially, the party leadership expected that if lawmakers listed in the bottom 20% declared they would not run in the general election, the scale of turnover would naturally increase.

However, as a result of the nomination application process, among 109 incumbent lawmakers running, 64 (59%) were uncontested candidates, and it is known that even some of the bottom 20% lawmakers were included in these uncontested districts, raising the possibility of uncontested nominations for them.

Nonetheless, it is uncertain how well the recruited political newcomers will perform against incumbent lawmakers in their districts. Considering factors such as recognition and regional base, it is expected to be a difficult battle as they lag behind incumbents in various aspects. The fact that the bottom 20% lawmakers have shown willingness to run despite score deductions in primaries is analyzed to stem from their confidence that they can still win.

A Democratic Party official said, "In fact, there may be resistance in the regions against 'stones that have rolled in' (newcomers)," adding, "Ultimately, how well they perform in opinion polls will likely be the key factor for recruited talents to pass the primaries."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.