The Democratic Party to Begin Internal Audit from October... Tensions Rise Ahead of 'Nomination Overhaul'

Mid-October to Late November Party Affairs Audit
Utilization of Next Year's General Election Evaluation Indicators

The People Power Party announced on the 3rd that it will conduct a regular party affairs audit targeting party member councils nationwide starting from mid-October. With the party affairs audit taking place half a year before the 22nd National Assembly general election, concerns about a 'nomination reshuffle' are growing both inside and outside the party.

The People Power Party's Party Affairs Audit Committee stated in a press release on the same day that it has approved the plan for the 2023 regular party member council audit. This is the first regular party affairs audit in three years since 2020, conducted to inspect the management status of party members and the operation of local organizations across nationwide party member councils, as well as to grasp regional trends in preparation for the 22nd general election.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The audit targets 209 party member councils out of the 253 nationwide, excluding 44 councils under special management. It is expected to start in mid-October and conclude by the end of November. The audit committee explained, "A distinctive feature is that on-site audits will be conducted for both parliamentary and non-parliamentary party member councils," adding, "Starting with the collection of preliminary inspection data before the charter audit, we will begin full-scale on-site audits from mid-October and complete all party affairs audits by the end of November to report to the Supreme Council."

Chairman Shin Euijin emphasized, "This party affairs audit will focus primarily on diagnosing the local activities and contributions to the party of party member council chairpersons, as well as their chances of winning in the 22nd general election," and added, "Along with verifying morality that meets the public's standards, we also plan to strengthen the evaluation criteria for legislative activities of parliamentary party member council chairpersons."

De facto 'Nomination Evaluation Index'... Incumbents on Edge

The reason why attention is focused on the party affairs audit is that it is effectively used as an evaluation index for nominations in next year's general election. Depending on the audit results, party member council chairpersons who fall below the standard may be removed, and new 'talents' may be recruited during nominations. With the April general election next year approaching, theories such as the 'TK (Daegu·Gyeongbuk) reshuffle' and 'prosecutor nomination speculation' are being raised, so it is also noteworthy whether the party affairs audit will have an impact.

Incumbent lawmakers are also on high alert regarding the party affairs audit. An incumbent lawmaker from the PK (Busan·Ulsan·Gyeongnam) region responded, "(The party affairs audit) will greatly affect next year's general election. The timing is significant." Regarding whether it will influence the TK reshuffle theory, he said, "There needs to be a decisive issue, but whether such a thing will actually come out is uncertain."

A first-term lawmaker said, "(Regarding this party affairs audit) naturally, we pay attention," adding, "There have been delays in the party affairs audit for various reasons, and since this audit cannot be unrelated to nominations, everyone will be attentive." He explained, "Until the audit begins, party member council chairpersons will try to fill any shortcomings."

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