What Do You Think About the Democratic Party's Amendment to the Party Constitution for Nomination?

Democratic Party Revises Party Rules for Nominations in Next Year's Seoul and Busan By-Elections
Criticism Continues Over Breaking 'No Nomination Principle'
Women Members of People Power Party and People Party Criticize Democratic Party as "Shameless"
Pro-Roh Yoo In-tae Says "Democratic Party Will Face Divine Punishment"

Democratic Party of Korea leader Lee Nak-yeon and floor leader Kim Tae-nyeon are attending the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 2nd. / Yonhap News

[Asia Economy reporters Han Seung-gon and Kim Seul-gi] As the Democratic Party of Korea decided to amend the party constitution to field candidates for the Seoul and Busan mayoral by-elections scheduled for April next year, controversy has arisen over the validity of the all-member vote for the amendment. Additionally, since the by-elections are being held due to the responsibility of Democratic Party-affiliated local leaders, there are ongoing criticisms that the Democratic Party, which had emphasized 'responsible politics,' is trying to evade responsibility.

On the 2nd, the Democratic Party amended the party constitution and decided to field candidates for the Seoul and Busan mayoral by-elections in April next year. On that day, the Democratic Party announced that out of 803,959 total eligible party members, 211,804 (26.35%) participated in the two-day vote starting from the 31st of last month, and 86.64% supported the amendment of the party constitution and nomination for the by-elections.

On the same day, Choi In-ho, the Democratic Party's chief spokesperson, said, "The overwhelming approval rate of 86.6% reflects the will of party members that candidates should be nominated in the by-elections," adding, "The leadership's decision that nominating candidates in the by-elections and receiving citizens' choice aligns better with responsible politics has received full support."

This raised questions about the validity of the all-member vote. According to the party constitution and regulations, an all-member vote requires at least one-third (33%) of eligible voters to participate and a majority to approve. However, the turnout for the party constitution amendment vote was only 26.35%, falling short of the quorum, leading to criticism that the vote was used as a pretext to force the nomination.

In response, Chief Spokesperson Choi dismissed the issue, stating, "This all-member vote was not a procedure for resolution but a way to gauge party members' will regarding candidate nomination, so it is unrelated to the relevant clause."

Another issue is that the Democratic Party's amendment of the party constitution cannot avoid criticism for violating the 'no-nomination principle.' The 'no-nomination principle' is a clause in the party constitution created in 2015 when President Moon Jae-in was the Democratic Party leader.

According to Article 96, Paragraph 2 of the current party constitution, if an elected official affiliated with the party loses their position due to serious misconduct such as corruption, the party does not recommend a candidate for the resulting by-election in that electoral district.

Therefore, according to the party constitution principle, the Democratic Party finds it difficult to field candidates in the April by-elections next year, which are being held due to the responsibility of local leaders such as the late Park Won-soon, former Seoul mayor, and Oh Keo-don, former Busan mayor, amid sexual misconduct allegations.

Executives of the Women’s Committee of the Seoul City Party of the People Power Party protested in front of the main gate of the National Assembly on the 2nd against the Democratic Party of Korea, which amended the party constitution to decide the nomination for the Seoul mayoral election. Photo by Yonhap News

This has led to ongoing criticism both inside and outside the party. Female lawmakers from the People Power Party and the People Party issued a statement on the day, criticizing, "If it is for political gain, the Democratic Party mobilizes an all-member vote to rationalize and justify, disguising it as a democratic appearance. This is the epitome of irresponsibility and shamelessness."

Kim Jong-in, emergency committee chairman of the People Power Party, held an urgent press conference at the National Assembly on the 1st, saying, "The Democratic Party is a party that has lost its integrity," and added, "The party constitution and regulations are promises to the people, so no one will accept overturning them by a party member vote."

The Justice Party also issued a statement on the 2nd, condemning "the cowardly behavior of the Democratic Party leadership that shifted responsibility to party members to realize flip-flop politics," and sharply criticized, "The way they discard promises, which were used as means of reform when necessary, like a worn-out rag will surely remain a disgrace in the history of the Democratic Party."

Criticism continued even within the ruling camp. Yoo In-tae, former Secretary-General of the National Assembly and considered an original pro-Moon (친노, Chin-No) figure who served as the first political secretary under the Roh Moo-hyun administration, also criticized, "(The party constitution amendment) is an action without justification."

In an interview with SBS's 'Joo Young-jin's News Briefing' on the same day, Yoo said, "They flipped it over like turning their hand. Even if there are practical unavoidable aspects, politics is about justification over practicality," pointing out.

He continued, "It could have been an opportunity to broaden the scope of coalition, but setting the party constitution without any objections and never implementing it once, then flipping it like this is an act without justification," adding, "(During the April 15 general election) when the opposition created proportional satellite parties, they said it was 'a sin deserving of divine punishment,' but the ruling party did the same. Overturning the party constitution and regulations this time is no different."

Kim Jong-in (right), Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, is speaking at an emergency press briefing condemning the Democratic Party's shameless nomination practice called "Palm Flip" held at the National Assembly on the 1st. On the left is Joo Ho-young, floor leader. Photo by Yonhap News.

As criticism continued, the Democratic Party announced that as part of its self-purification efforts, it would open an Ethics Reporting Center and a Gender Violence Reporting and Counseling Center and strengthen gender-sensitivity education to prevent sexual misconduct and corruption issues.

On the 2nd, Democratic Party leader Lee Nak-yeon said at the Supreme Council meeting, "Even if the will of party members is gathered, it does not exempt us from the fault of causing a vacancy in Seoul and Busan city administrations and holding by-elections," and bowed his head, saying, "I apologize once again to the citizens of Seoul and Busan and the people. I also repeatedly apologize to the victims."

Supreme Council member Yang Hyang-ja also said, "I hope all criticism is directed only at our leadership. We will accept the criticism of abandoning principles and the criticism of whether we are qualified for nomination," emphasizing again, "We will directly ask the citizens whether the Democratic Party is qualified. We will be chosen, forgiven, and return with pride."

Experts foresee that the Democratic Party's party constitution amendment for nomination purposes will hinder political development.

Yang Seung-ham, emeritus professor of political science and diplomacy at Yonsei University, said, "Defining the party constitution and regulations is like reaffirming the party's principles. The Democratic Party's amendment is a conscienceless and hypocritical act," adding, "The public can only be greatly disappointed in the Democratic Party. Politics is about cause and justification, but who can claim cause and justification when it changes depending on circumstances?"

He further criticized, "They are moving according to party interests. If they do not deeply reflect on such behavior, there will be no political development."

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