DPK Responds to 'Kim Yongnam Power Abuse' Allegations: "Refrain from Baseless Claims... Let the Public Decide"

Joonhyun Kang Holds Press Briefing

Candidate Registration Complete... Disqualification Unlikely

On Reluctance to Join Debates: "Sufficient Opportunities for Scrutiny"

On May 19, the Democratic Party of Korea addressed the controversy surrounding Democratic Party candidate Kim Yongnam, who is running in the parliamentary by-election in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, over allegations that he defended aides accused of assault and sex crimes. The party stated, "Negative campaigning based on unsubstantiated claims should be avoided."

Junhyun Kang, Senior Spokesperson of the Democratic Party, held a press conference at the National Assembly on this day and said, "With candidate registration now complete, it is physically impossible to carry out further verification procedures," making the above statement.

He added, "If such suspicions arise during the preliminary candidate verification stage, there is ample time for thorough review by various bodies such as the Ethics Inspection Team. At this point, there is no significant disqualifying reason for the party to revoke a candidate's nomination. Therefore, the decision now rests solely with the people," he explained.

Junhyun Kang, Senior Spokesperson of the Democratic Party of Korea. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Spokesperson Kang also mentioned Ulsan mayoral candidate Kim Sangwook, who was embroiled in allegations of receiving sexual entertainment in the Philippines following a broadcast by the YouTube channel Garoseoro Research Institute the previous day. He said, "Low-level negative campaigning is repeated in every election, but it is entirely inappropriate," pointing out that, "The problem is that false information is spread, and when we file complaints later, the punishment is merely a slap on the wrist."

On the same day, Spokesperson Kang responded to criticisms that Democratic Party candidates are reluctant to participate in debates, saying, "I don't think they are blindly refusing to attend debates. Debates must at least guarantee fairness, transparency, and objectivity," and added, "There will be several more election debates organized by public broadcasters, so I believe there will be ample opportunities for citizens to scrutinize the candidates."

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