Why Did the Four Opposition Parties Including the Justice Party Stage a Sit-in at the Democratic Party's General Assembly Hall?

Minor Opposition Parties Cautious About Possible Agreement on Parallel Voting System with Democratic Party
Voices Within Democratic Party Leadership Express Concern Over Parallel Voting Agreement
Democratic Party Seems Worried About Post-Failure of Ruling and Opposition Election System Agreement

The Democratic Party of Korea is facing concerns within the opposition as the possibility arises that it may choose a parallel voting system instead of a mixed-member proportional representation system for the proportional representation selection method in next year's general election. Minor parties such as the Justice Party, as well as members within the Democratic Party, are voicing opposition to a return to the parallel voting system.

On the 14th, a remarkable scene unfolded in front of the Democratic Party's caucus meeting room, where the four opposition parties excluding the Democratic Party, including the Justice Party, staged a sit-in protest. The Democratic Party planned to hold a caucus meeting that day to discuss the direction of the election law revision. Minor parties such as the Justice Party are wary of the Democratic Party potentially reverting from the current semi-proportional representation system to the previous parallel voting system for selecting proportional representatives. The mixed-member proportional representation system allocates proportional seats based on the proportion of votes received: if a party wins many constituency seats, fewer proportional seats are allocated, and if it wins fewer constituency seats, more proportional seats are assigned, thereby enhancing proportionality. The parallel voting system allocates seats based on the proportional vote share regardless of constituency seats. While the parallel voting system was adopted in the past, the 20th National Assembly revised the election law to introduce the semi-proportional system to strengthen proportionality.

Photo by Ryu Taemin

Lee Jeong-mi, leader of the Justice Party, stated at a press conference before the sit-in protest, "Yesterday, the four parties?Labor Party, Green Party, Justice Party, and Progressive Party?adopted a joint resolution opposing the return to the parallel voting system that existed before the Candlelight Revolution during a joint meeting between party leaders and parliamentary groups," adding, "Today, as the first action, we are holding a joint press conference." Lee criticized, "The two major parties are uniting tightly once again to thwart the desire for election reform," and said, "While outwardly proclaiming to end internal conflicts, they are secretly bringing back a regional parallel proportional representation system that is a significant regression, which instead incites extreme confrontation between the two parties."

Before the caucus meeting, some Democratic Party members also held a press conference opposing the return to the parallel voting system for proportional representation. The press release, signed by 55 members, stated, "We clearly reaffirm the party's position on election law negotiations and declare the prevention of satellite party formation and the upholding of the mixed-member proportional representation principle."

The backlash from not only minor parties but also within the Democratic Party stems from the concern that the principle of mixed-member proportional representation, which has been the Democratic Party's main justification for the election system, could be undermined during the election law negotiations for next year's general election.

Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Jong-min, after the press conference, told reporters, "The leadership told reform-minded lawmakers that if the mixed system is maintained as is, satellite parties cannot be prevented," and explained, "Introducing laws to prevent satellite parties has constitutional issues and the president might veto them, making it practically difficult. Therefore, they said the election law negotiations will inevitably move toward a parallel voting system for proportional representation." This means that due to difficulties in resolving the satellite party issue that arose in the last general election, they are considering returning to the parallel voting method for selecting proportional representatives as before. The Democratic Party leadership has internally indicated that it may withdraw from the principle of the mixed-member proportional system during negotiations with the ruling party.

Regarding the election law negotiations, Kim expressed that if the parallel system is inevitable, the number of proportional seats should be increased. He said, "Through the press conference, lawmakers clearly stated that they are prepared to relinquish any vested interests, including constituency strongholds, if necessary for election reform," and added, "If we must go with the parallel system, lawmakers are ready to make the decision to reduce constituency seats."

On the 13th, a joint meeting of party leaders and members both inside and outside the National Assembly was held to block the revision of the election law. Attendees included Lee Jeong-mi of the Justice Party, Yoon Hee-sook of the Progressive Party, Lee Jong-hoe of the Labor Party, and Kim Chan-hwi of the Green Party.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Kim Young-bae, the Democratic Party's secretary of the Special Committee on Political Reform and the lead negotiator on election law, told Asia Economy in a phone interview, "The Democratic Party continues to advocate for the mixed-member proportional system, but the People Power Party opposes it, so there is some concern," explaining the situation. He said, "If the People Power Party opposes the current semi-proportional system and no agreement is reached, the election will be held under the existing law. This could lead to the creation of satellite parties again," and added, "Because of this concern, we are pondering how to find a breakthrough."

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