Lee Jae-myung: "Nomination for Seoul and Busan Mayors by the Ruling Party Must Follow Party Decision"

"Ensure Diversity of Opinions, but Follow the Party's Decision Once Made"

Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung is responding to a lawmaker's question during the National Assembly Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee's audit of Gyeonggi Province held at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government Office in Paldal-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do on the 20th of last month. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ga-yeon] Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, commented on the Democratic Party of Korea's decision to field candidates in next year's by-elections for the Seoul and Busan mayoral offices through a party-wide vote, saying, "As a party member, if the party has made a decision, we just have to follow it."

On the 2nd, after attending the 'Gyeonggi Province National Assembly Members Invitation Budget Policy Meeting' near the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, Lee met with reporters and responded to a question about criticism that this is not responsible politics by saying, "What else can I say in the current situation?"

He added, "In a political party, there are diverse opinions before a decision is made, but once a decision is made, everyone should follow it. Diversity is guaranteed, but once decided, the party must act in unison."

When asked, "Do you think a candidate should be fielded?" he refrained from answering, saying, "Don't ask me that. It's already in the past."

Meanwhile, the Democratic Party amended its party constitution to decide to field candidates in the Seoul and Busan mayoral by-elections scheduled for April next year.

Party leader Lee Nak-yeon said at the Supreme Council meeting that day, "I thank the party members who understood that this was an unavoidable decision. Even though the will of the party members has been gathered, it does not excuse the mistake of causing a vacancy in the Seoul and Busan administrations and holding by-elections," adding, "I apologize once again to the citizens of Seoul and Busan as well as the people of the nation. I also repeatedly apologize to the victims."

He continued, "We know well that for this apology to be sincere, actions must follow. The party has newly activated the Ethics Inspection Team and today opened the Ethics Reporting Center and Gender Violence Reporting Counseling Center to take follow-up measures such as investigating sexual misconduct and corruption among elected officials and key party officials," adding, "We will also strengthen gender-sensitivity education and ensure that such (sexual harassment) misconduct never happens again."

He further stated, "The reason for fielding candidates in the by-elections is because respecting voters' right to choose is the responsible attitude of a public party. We will find the most moral and competent candidates through thorough verification and fair primaries and present them to the voters," adding, "We will ensure that citizens can freely choose candidates and feel rewarded by the results."

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