Lee Nak-yeon Joins: Will He Compensate for Lee Jae-myung's Weaknesses of 'No Legislative Experience, Solo Play, and Party-Government Conflicts'?

Lee Nak-yeon Supported by Lee's Election Committee
Merger with Open Democratic Party
Promotion of Reinstatement for Resigned Members
Initiating Expansion of Centrist Base
Control by 86 Group and Pro-Moon Factions
Attention to Addressing Weaknesses

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, is attending the 'Broadcast Journalists Club Debate' held at the Korea Broadcasting Hall in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, on the 2nd, waiting for the debate to begin. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] Presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung, who established a ‘two-top system’ with the addition of former Democratic Party leader Lee Nak-yeon, is set to rally his support base and expand his reach to moderate voters. Boosted by Lee Nak-yeon’s entry, Lee plans to unite the democratic reform forces through a merger with the Open Democratic Party and a ‘New Year amnesty’ for returning defectors.

Attention is focused on whether former leader Lee Nak-yeon, a five-term lawmaker, former Prime Minister, and former Governor of Jeonnam, can complement candidate Lee Jae-myung’s weakness as a ‘zero-term, non-mainstream’ politician with limited political experience in Yeouido, creating a ‘synergy.’

Although candidate Lee declared January 22 as the ‘first day of a new Democratic Party’ and called for party reform, his proposed policies such as universal disaster relief payments and the postponement of capital gains tax hikes repeatedly faced opposition from the party and the Blue House, leading to ‘discord controversies.’ He was criticized for failing to fully overcome the ‘veto’ sentiment from the party mainstream, including the 86 group and pro-Moon Jae-in factions, with remarks like ‘Lee Jae-myung is running alone,’ ‘relying solely on personal plays,’ and ‘not listening to internal criticism.’

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, and former leader Lee Nak-yeon are meeting at a tea house in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 24th. Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers Group

On the 24th, candidate Lee appeared on a radio show and said, "A party is not an organization with strict top-down orders or uniform thinking like the military or other organizations. Diversity, role-sharing, and internal cohesion are necessary, and externally, expansion into the moderate camp is also needed." He explained, "Former leader Lee’s intention to voice different opinions is also necessary for his role as co-chair of the National Vision and Integration Committee to expand into the moderate camp." Oh Young-hoon, secretary-general of the election campaign committee and a participant in Lee Nak-yeon’s primary campaign, added on the radio, "The National Vision Integration Committee, composed of the two, will hold regular meetings to draw the blueprint for the 4th Democratic government."

Former leader Lee Nak-yeon is expected to actively support candidate Lee’s ‘integration’ efforts. The Democratic Party plans to announce a merger with the Open Democratic Party next week and push for a large-scale amnesty for defectors to rally the democratic reform camp. In this process, many defectors who left during the 2016 split of the New Politics Alliance for Democracy (such as former lawmakers Jeong Dong-young and Cheon Jeong-bae) are expected to return. Additionally, former leader Lee is expected to play a role in consolidating the pro-Moon Jae-in faction and the party mainstream 86 group.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Candidate Lee’s camp has faced criticism for failing to dominate the party’s parliamentary groups due to the power imbalance between the party and Blue House, dominated by the 86 group, and candidate Lee, whose approval ratings are lower than President Moon’s. His narrow primary victory with 50.3% also reflected his weak base within the party. A Democratic Party campaign official said, "Former leader Lee will play the role of the ‘red team’ and his entry itself will create tension among parliamentary groups, but externally, we will highlight his weight and crisis management capabilities."

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