The 'Separation of Party Leadership and Presidential Candidacy' Rule That Even Challenges the Super Ruling Party... Including Calls to Endorse Lee Nak-yeon

Lee Nak-yeon, Standing Election Committee Chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea, is smiling brightly while attending the disbandment ceremony of the Election Committee held at the central party office in Yeouido, Seoul on the 17th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] There is growing interest in the next party leader who will lead the Democratic Party of Korea, which has become a 'super ruling party' with 180 seats. Amid the solidifying 'Lee Nak-yeon anticipation theory,' the sudden emergence of calls for establishing a 'temporary leadership system' has become a new variable in the next party leadership race.

According to political circles on the 23rd, recently within the Democratic Party, a 'temporary leadership' system centered around former Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon, a prominent presidential candidate, has been discussed. The proposal is to postpone the party convention scheduled for August and select a party leader with a 6-7 month term through an acclamation method.

This proposal stems from the 'separation rule between presidential and party leadership' stipulated in the Democratic Party's regulations. According to the rules, a party leader must resign from the position one year before running for president. Since resignation must occur before March 2021, it effectively means a 7-month term for the party leader, which causes hesitation for former Prime Minister Lee, who is considered a strong contender for party leadership.

Considering the economic crisis caused by the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the latter half of the Moon Jae-in administration's governance, and the 180 seats held, the reality that stable leadership is required within the ruling party cannot be ignored. These factors seem to bolster the argument for establishing such a temporary leadership system.

For former Prime Minister Lee, this temporary leadership system is certainly an attractive card. Although brief, if he takes party leadership, it could help expand his influence within the party, which has been considered a weakness. If he demonstrates stable leadership during party management, it is expected that a smooth path toward the presidency will open. Additionally, he could follow the model of President Moon Jae-in, who became party leader of the New Politics Alliance for Democracy in February 2015 and immediately challenged and succeeded in the presidential race.

However, side effects are also anticipated. First, since the temporary leadership is still a 'leadership,' some members of the Supreme Council must be directly appointed. A Democratic Party official said, "Naturally, former Prime Minister Lee's influence cannot strongly operate during the leadership formation process, and at this time, criticisms of 'power consolidation' and 'division' may arise," adding, "Therefore, former Prime Minister Lee might oppose the temporary leadership system."

Also, the aspect of generating excitement in the presidential race must be considered. The ruling party has many potential presidential candidates. Besides Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung, and lawmakers Kim Boo-kyum, Kim Young-choon, and elected member Kim Doo-kwan are mentioned as potential presidential hopefuls. If the party appears to 'favor' only former Prime Minister Lee's presidential bid through the temporary leadership system, it could give the impression of prematurely deciding the presidential candidate.

Opposition from other party leadership candidates besides former Prime Minister Lee is also expected. Lawmakers such as Song Young-gil, who placed second in the last party leadership election, as well as Hong Young-pyo, Lee In-young, and Woo Won-shik, former and current floor leaders, are anticipated to run for party leadership. These figures have contributed to stable party management over the past four years and the recent sweeping victory in the general election. There may be dissatisfaction with postponing the party leader election to support a specific candidate.

Some voices argue that the root cause of the temporary leadership proposal should be eliminated first. A Democratic Party lawmaker said, "The 'separation rule between party leadership and presidential candidacy' is rather an obstacle in fair party leadership and presidential competition," and added, "It should be amended."

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