From Analyzing Election Defeats to Calls for Lee Jae-myung's Withdrawal from the Party Convention... Opposition Party Flooded with 'Reform' Demands

Democratic Party 2-Day Workshop Concludes
"Restoring Trust Through Painstaking Efforts"

Hong Young-pyo Pressures Lee Jae-myung Not to Run
Lee Avoids Direct Response

[Yesan=Asia Economy reporters Park Jun-yi and Oh Ju-yeon] The Democratic Party of Korea, which is working to recover from defeats in the presidential and local elections, has embarked on seeking a new path for the party with the keywords ‘livelihood, competence, and innovation.’ At the National Assembly level, the party aims to become a ‘competent opposition party’ that checks and monitors the Yoon Seok-yeol government and the ruling party while addressing the livelihood economy. At the party level, it plans to showcase a newly reformed party image at the upcoming party convention in August. Amid this process, demands for ‘Lee Jae-myung’s non-candidacy’ are intensifying within the party, drawing attention to whether the party’s reform will lead to a generational change.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 24th, the Democratic Party concluded a two-day, one-night lawmakers’ workshop held since the 23rd at a resort in Yesan, Chungnam, emphasizing transformation into a strong ruling party. On this day, the Democratic Party issued a resolution stating, "We will restore the public’s trust through fierce self-innovation that cuts to the bone." It emphasized ▲ a competent and humble livelihood party ▲ a strong opposition party ▲ fostering new leadership and innovation through communication. The party explained that the current government and ruling party are failing to properly respond to livelihood issues and that the Democratic Party must reinvent itself as a competent livelihood party to correct the direction of state governance. The Democratic Party pledged to accept and change the parts pointed out as causes of defeat in the last election without reservation.

Cho Seung-rae, spokesperson for the Democratic Party, said in a morning briefing, "We discussed five main topics: party introspection, fandom politics, the future direction of the Democratic Party, preparations for the party convention, and more," adding, "We acknowledged public criticism regarding double standards, arrogance, and dogmatism, and emphasized the need to transform fandom politics and factionalism into a party culture based on mutual respect and cooperation."

In particular, regarding the election defeat, the party placed weight on the need for collective responsibility and reflection rather than focusing on specific issues, periods, or individuals. This was an explanation related to the growing ‘Lee Jae-myung responsibility theory’ within the party and the increasing calls for Lee’s non-candidacy at the party convention.

The most notable topic at this workshop was the discussion about candidates for the August party convention and the next leadership structure. Amid rising demands for non-candidacy from those responsible for the election defeat, influential pro-Moon Jae-in faction lawmaker Jeon Hae-cheol declared he would not run, followed by Hong Young-pyo urging Lee Jae-myung to also step down, signaling a red light for Lee’s bid for party leader.

During the free discussion at the workshop the previous day, the group discussion scheduled from 8:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. also reflected this trend. Lee and Hong belonged to the same Group 14, which was dubbed the ‘group of death’ on site, attracting attention. The discussion reportedly continued until around 11:15 p.m., an hour past the scheduled time.

Goh Yong-jin, who was in the same group as Lee, said on a radio show that day, "Hong urged Lee to step down." He added, "If Lee runs, Hong would seriously consider whether to run as well, and given the complex circumstances, party unity and integration would be difficult," conveying this message. The atmosphere was that if Lee did not run, Hong would also refrain from running. Senior pro-Lee Nak-yeon faction lawmaker Seol Hoon also privately urged Lee to step down during a closed-door full meeting that day, and Jeon, who declared non-candidacy on the 22nd, is also discouraging Lee from running.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

However, Lee himself refrained from giving a direct answer to the calls for his non-candidacy at the party convention. After reading the workshop resolution, Lee told reporters when asked about the ‘non-candidacy talk,’ "The economy is currently in a very difficult situation," and added, "I hope there will be in-depth discussions on ways to overcome the economic crisis and resolve livelihood issues as a party responsible for the people’s lives."

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