[Exclusive] Ruling Party Lawmakers' Group Chat Demands 'Urgent Party Meeting and Emergency Committee' Amid Calls for 3-Term Resignation... Surge of Calls for Campaign Committee Reform

Practical Core Campaign Committee Consensus
Calls for Resignation of Lawmakers with 3+ Terms Raised
Emergency General Assembly Convened and Demands for Emergency Committee
Flood of Reform Demands for 'Campaign Committee Expansion'
Caution Urged Over Potential Party Division

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy reporters Koo Chae-eun and Jeon Jin-young] Amid a wave of self-reflection on the problems of the ‘Lee Jae-myung Election Countermeasures Committee,’ a call for the retirement of senior lawmakers with three or more terms is emerging within the Democratic Party. The idea is to demonstrate the party’s reform intentions through a ‘restructuring of the core election committee with senior lawmakers stepping back to two terms and a practical, expert-centered approach.’ The aim is to break the seniority system that assigns key positions to multi-term lawmakers and reorganize the committee around experts, but some voices oppose this, viewing it as a ‘destructive approach.’

According to the Democratic Party on the 19th, this discussion was triggered when a senior lawmaker posted in an SNS group chat for Democratic Party lawmakers the day before, stating, “Lawmakers with three or more terms should all step down from the election committee, and a practical core election committee should be formed.” Many lawmakers expressed agreement, leading to suggestions for an emergency party meeting or even the introduction of an emergency response committee system.

A first-term lawmaker participating in the discussion said, “A three-term lawmaker directly raised the ‘senior lawmaker retirement theory,’ and there was consensus on convening a party meeting,” adding, “The party is accepting the criticisms of the election committee pointed out by the media and is trying to have a sense of crisis and self-purification.” Another lawmaker explained, “The party needs to reform to capture the centrist vote, and as part of that, the call for three-term retirements was raised,” further stating, “Lawmakers and regional committee heads outside the National Assembly should thoroughly manage their regions, while policy, execution, and election strategy teams should be agile and decision-making should be centered on practical staff.”

Song Young-gil, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is delivering opening remarks at the Central Election Countermeasures Committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the 15th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

Candidate Lee Jae-myung is also supporting the call for restructuring the election committee. In a media interview released on the 18th, he said, “The process of defining each person’s responsibilities and roles (within the election committee) is not yet complete,” adding, “If everyone fulfills their roles faithfully, special units, external organizations, and outside personnel will gradually be mobilized.”

However, among lawmakers with three or more terms who are mentioned as targets for reform, there are signs of resistance, citing concerns that this could cause division within the party. A senior lawmaker told this outlet in a phone interview, “The election committee has been formed and is moving forward as one team in harmony, so I don’t understand why such talk is coming up.” Another senior lawmaker also expressed discomfort in a phone interview, saying, “We should not approach this destructively,” and added, “The system should be changed to enhance agility, but this should not be viewed as a matter of seniority or first-term status.”

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