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The curtain has risen on the election to choose the new floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea. The upcoming floor leader race, featuring a four-way contest among pro-Lee Jae-myung (pro-Lee) faction members Hong Ik-pyo, Kim Du-kwan, and Park Beom-gye, and the anti-Lee (non-Lee) faction member Park Kwang-on, is likely to become a factional vote battle as the scandal over Lee Jae-myung’s judicial risks and the 2021 Democratic Party convention cash envelope controversy intensifies.

According to political circles on the 20th, the Democratic Party will hold a joint candidate debate on the 25th to compete on visions, followed by the floor leader election on the 28th of this month. As of the candidate registration deadline on the 19th, the candidates are ▲No. 1 Hong Ik-pyo ▲No. 2 Kim Du-kwan ▲No. 3 Park Beom-gye ▲No. 4 Park Kwang-on. Initially, Lee Won-wook from the non-Lee faction, who was considering running, suddenly withdrew, resulting in a competition among three pro-Lee candidates and one non-Lee candidate.

Within the party, there is a strong voice that the next floor leader should be a stable figure capable of managing Lee’s judicial risks and the ‘cash envelope’ allegations involving party lawmakers. Since the floor leader is a position that leads the party alongside the party leader, there is consensus that minimizing clashes with Lee is essential.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier, Lee Won-wook declared his withdrawal on his Facebook, stating, "I will stop my challenge for floor leader in the face of the Democratic Party’s crisis." Park Kwang-on, who decided to run at the last minute, also said, "We must reorganize and revive the precarious opposition party to restore broken democracy and livelihood politics." Right after registering as a candidate, Kim Du-kwan told reporters, "The Democratic Party faces very difficult internal and external circumstances, so the role of the next floor leader elected on the 28th is extremely important."

Inside and outside the party, Park Kwang-on, the only non-Lee faction candidate, is cautiously seen as having a chance of winning. Park, who served as secretary-general during former party leader Lee Nak-yeon’s tenure, narrowly lost in the previous floor leader election and is known to have managed the floor’s voter base early on for a rematch. Also, since he has relatively weak factional ties, his strength lies in uniting the non-Lee faction and absorbing votes from both the pro-Moon Jae-in and pro-Lee Nak-yeon factions. A Democratic Party second-term lawmaker said, "Park Kwang-on, who ran once in the last floor leader election and has good relations with lawmakers across the party, seems suitable," adding, "Although he is from the non-Lee faction, he seems like someone who can also accept Lee’s opinions well."

In particular, since the current leadership is dominated by the pro-Lee faction, there is a demand within some party circles for the non-Lee faction to balance the power, which is advantageous for Park. All other candidates except Park are classified as pro-Lee faction members. Hong Ik-pyo is affiliated with the ‘People’s Alliance for Economic Democracy and Peaceful Reunification’ (Minpyeongryeon) and the party’s largest parliamentary group ‘Better Future,’ and is considered close to the ‘pro-Lee’ camp. Kim Du-kwan revealed his factional colors in a letter to lawmakers on the 17th, stating, "We must create a ‘Lee Jae-myung Reform Party’ led by Kim Du-kwan." Park Beom-gye also serves as the chair of the Countermeasures Committee against Prosecutorial Dictatorship and Repression, directly explaining and rebutting Lee’s judicial allegations.

However, some within the party suggest that for smooth party management, a pro-Lee faction lawmaker who can work in harmony with Lee might be chosen, making Hong Ik-pyo a strong candidate as well. A Democratic Party official analyzed, "Ultimately, the leadership wants a floor leader who can speak with one voice," adding, "The party leader and supreme council members are secretly hoping for this as well."

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