"Passage Is an Act of Betrayal... Appropriate Action to Follow"?Democratic Party Descends Into Civil War

Court to Hold Warrant Review for Lee Jaemyung on the 26th
Mass Resignation of Floor Leadership... Election for New Floor Leader
Non-Lee Faction: "Rooting Out 'Watermelon' Group Is the Real Act of Betrayal"

"It is an unacceptable act to have played into the opposition suppression scheme of the Yoon Suk-yeol prosecution dictatorship regime. We will take appropriate measures in response." (Jeong Chungrae, Supreme Council Member of the Democratic Party of Korea)

The Supreme Council meeting of the Democratic Party held at the National Assembly on the 22nd was marked by harsh remarks from the very beginning. With the arrest motion for Lee Jaemyung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, passing the National Assembly the previous day due to defections from within the party, the Democratic Party now appears to be in a state of virtual civil war. As Park Kwangon, the party's floor leader, resigned to take responsibility for failing to control the votes, cracks are also emerging within the party leadership. Observers note that the conflict between the pro-Lee (pro-Lee Jaemyung) faction and the non-Lee faction has reached its peak. The backlash from the passage of the arrest motion against Lee is expected to significantly disrupt the regular session schedule of the National Assembly.

The Seoul Central District Court announced that it would hold a warrant review for Lee Jaemyung on the 26th on charges including violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes. The arrest motion for Lee was passed during the National Assembly plenary session the previous day, with 149 votes in favor, 136 against, 4 invalid, and 6 abstentions out of 295 members present. This outcome defied expectations both inside and outside the Democratic Party, where many had anticipated the motion would be rejected. Immediately after the passage, a heated debate erupted at the Democratic Party's general assembly, and during the Supreme Council meeting on the morning of the 22nd, criticism continued regarding at least 29 defecting votes from within the party.

In particular, Supreme Council Member Jeong emphasized, "Members of our own party have sold out their own party leader," and added, "We will gather the will of all party members and respond accordingly to these acts of betrayal." Lawmaker An Minseok also appeared on CBS Radio the same day, declaring, "From this moment on, there are no longer pro-Lee or non-Lee factions," and added, "I want to distinguish between those who voted against and those who voted for the motion within the party," further stating, "The passage of the arrest motion amounts to a 'murder by proxy' by the group that voted in favor."

He continued, "Isn't 'murder by proxy' about killing someone using another person's knife? This is essentially a murder by proxy, removing the party leader by borrowing the power of the People Power Party." The previous day, Kim Byungki, the party's chief deputy secretary-general, wrote on social media, "Today will be remembered as the day Democratic Party lawmakers became dogs," and urged, "(Lee Jaemyung) should now draw his sword." This is interpreted as a call for a sweeping purge in candidate nominations and other areas. The pro-Lee faction and the Supreme Council plan to visit Green Hospital, where Lee is hospitalized, to urge him to end his hunger strike.

Jeong Cheongrae, Supreme Council Member of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 22nd. Photo by Kim Hyunmin kimhyun81@

On the other hand, the non-Lee faction strongly refuted the claim that voting in favor of the motion constituted an act of betrayal. Lawmaker Kim Jongmin appeared on SBS Radio's "Kim Taehyun's Political Show" and said, "They call it betrayal, but this is what the party leader promised to the public in June," and argued, "Senior lawmakers with extensive political experience should at least form a consultative body to responsibly discuss how to navigate this crisis and work together to build party consensus for change and reform." Lee Sangmin, another Democratic Party lawmaker, also pushed back during an interview on CBS Radio's "Kim Hyunjung's News Show" regarding calls to "root out the 'watermelon' group" (a derogatory term for non-Lee faction members), saying, "That is the real act of betrayal," and added, "How can you root out people in an anonymous, secret ballot? It's irrational and undemocratic."

Cracks in the leadership structure are also becoming apparent following the resignation of Floor Leader Park. Ko Minjung, the only Supreme Council member identified as non-Lee in the Supreme Council, publicly revealed that she had voted against the motion and raised the possibility of resigning from her position. Ko stated, "I will follow the judgment of the party members. If I am asked to resign, I will resign; if I am asked to stay, I will stay."

This factional clash within the Democratic Partyis seen as a strategic maneuvering in preparation for a possible vacancy in the party leadership. If Lee Jaemyung is detained and the party shifts to an acting leadership system, the acting leader will be selected in order of highest vote share among the floor leader and elected Supreme Council members. Although there were calls for the entire leadership to resign at the general assembly the previous day, only the floor leadership stepped down while the Supreme Council remained, which appears to reflect a judgment that Park Kwangon could not be entrusted with the role of acting leader. It is expected that the pro-Lee-dominated Supreme Council will now exercise leadership.

The new floor leader is expected to be elected quickly. While party rules stipulate that a successor must be chosen within one month of the floor leader's resignation, Supreme Council Member Jeong stated, "We will elect the new floor leader as soon as possible, ideally before the Chuseok holiday." This signals an intent to resolve the issue swiftly and decisively.

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