Did the Minjoo Party Fear 'Gaeddal' Defection? Rapid Disciplinary Action on Choi Kang-wook's 'Female' Remark

Following the MZ Anger Banner Incident
Choi Kang-wook's "Female Dogs Are Making a Fuss" Remark
Negative Impact on Female Supporters Aged 20-40

The Democratic Party of Korea is hastily trying to quell the controversy surrounding former lawmaker Choi Kang-wook's 'misogynistic' remarks. Unlike the case with lawmaker Kim Nam-guk's 'coin scandal,' the party's unusually swift response to resolve the issue is interpreted as a measure to prevent the defection of the party's solid support base of women in their 20s to 40s ahead of next year's general election.

On the 22nd, the Democratic Party imposed a 'six-month suspension of party membership' on former lawmaker Choi Kang-wook, who sparked controversy with his 'female animal' remarks. Park Sung-jun, the party's spokesperson, told reporters after the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly that day, "In accordance with Article 77 of the party constitution and Articles 7-14 and 7-32 of the party regulations, we have resolved to impose an emergency disciplinary action suspending Choi Kang-wook's party membership for six months."

Earlier, on the 19th, former lawmaker Choi attended a book concert by lawmaker Min Hyung-bae at Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, where he criticized the Yoon Seok-yeol administration, saying, "Even in the novel Animal Farm, female animals rarely cause a ruckus. The Yoon Seok-yeol government surpasses that." The expression equating 'causing a ruckus' with 'female animals' sparked public outrage, prompting party leader Lee Jae-myung to post on Facebook the previous day, "We will respond strictly without tolerance to inappropriate remarks as public servants of the people."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Article 7-32 of the Democratic Party regulations states, "The party leader may impose disciplinary actions by resolution of the Supreme Council, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 13 and 25, when there are serious and obvious grounds for discipline during elections or other emergency situations, or when urgent handling is necessary to prevent serious problems for the party."

The Democratic Party's decision to urgently discipline former lawmaker Choi through the Supreme Council without going through the party's Ethics Tribunal appears to stem from concerns that his remarks, which escalated into a 'misogyny' controversy, could cause the party to lose its core support base.

According to a party support survey conducted by polling firm Yeoronjosaggot (surveyed 1,003 men and women nationwide aged 18 and older on the 17th and 18th, with a margin of error of ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level; see the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission for details), the Democratic Party showed higher support among women than men in their 20s (women 63.8% - men 29.0%), 30s (60.5% - 55.5%), and 40s (70.6% - 62.8%).

At the Supreme Council meeting, party leader Lee Jae-myung said, "Lax discipline and controversial remarks are burdens and crises for the party," and added, "The party has become complacent and lax, but we must use this as an opportunity for change and respond strictly to the issue," according to spokesperson Park.

Some analysts suggest that the party leadership's lukewarm attitude during lawmaker Kim Nam-guk's 'coin scandal,' which led to widespread criticism, contributed to the swift disciplinary action this time. Democratic Party lawmaker Yoon Young-chan appeared on SBS Radio that day and said, "Until now, there were only verbal warnings without substantial measures. If a strong response had been taken early during lawmaker Kim Nam-guk's (coin) incident, the fire could have been put out quickly. Instead, it went all the way to the Ethics Committee, and it was the Democratic Party that prevented expulsion there." Regarding former lawmaker Choi's discipline, he emphasized, "Discipline must not end with words but must be followed through with action for the party's order to be restored."

Previously, the Democratic Party also faced public backlash over a 'youth disparagement' banner, which seems to have influenced this disciplinary decision. On the 17th, the party unveiled four banner designs nationwide targeting people in their 20s and 30s, with phrases such as "Naege Ondaeng" (a pun meaning "The party came to me"), "I don't know politics, but I want to live well," "I don't know the economy, but I want lots of money!" and "I said I want to live alone, did I say I want to be alone?" Even within the party, these sparked criticism as "evidence of a lack of understanding of the youth generation," leading the Democratic Party to cancel the planned events promoted by these banners and reconsider them from scratch.

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