"Minsaengdang and Tonghapdang?..." Democratic Party Draws the Line, Leaving Staff Deep in Thought

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jin-young] After the April 15 general election, the concerns of the aides of defeated lawmakers are deepening. In particular, aides from opposition parties are facing a real 'job search crisis.' In addition, the Democratic Party of Korea, which has become the 'super ruling party,' has drawn a line by stating that aides from other parties will undergo 'thorough verification,' which is expected to increase confusion regarding the aides of the 21st National Assembly.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 24th, the Democratic Party sent out a notice regarding the composition of aides for the 21st National Assembly members-elect. The document included ▲priority appointment of aides from defeated 20th National Assembly members ▲prohibition of hiring relatives, illicit operation of aides, and socially condemned acts ▲appointment of ‘Central Party office staff’ recommended by the central party ▲thorough verification when appointing aides from other parties ▲aides must be registered party members, among other contents.

The item 'thorough verification when appointing aides from other parties' targeted the Minsheng Party and the United Future Party. The Democratic Party stated, “Some aides from the Minsheng Party engaged in acts equivalent to defamation and negative campaigning against Democratic Party candidates in this election.” Regarding the United Future Party aides, it said, “Please be aware that there was a physical clash between Democratic Party aides and United Future Party aides at the National Assembly during the fast-track process in April last year.”

It further stated, “In addition to work ability, identity and history of such acts will be thoroughly verified.” Since the aides of the Minsheng Party, which failed to secure seats in this election, were classified as part of the pro-government camp, they considered entering the Democratic Party’s aide ranks, but difficulties are expected.

Before the 20th National Assembly, the Democratic Party relatively freely allowed party affiliation changes for aides, even sending application notices regarding aide appointments to aides of the People’s Party who had not withdrawn from the Democratic Party Aides Council. However, through processes such as the fast-track and general election, the hurdles have increased.

A National Assembly official said, “There are opinions that this was predictable, but mostly there are voices of surprise. As far as I know, this is the first time the central party notice explicitly stated thorough verification for aides from other parties.” He added, “The most important thing for aides is not loyalty to the party but work ability.”

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