The Democratic Party of Korea is embroiled in controversy after it was reported that the party entrusted a public opinion polling company, which sparked controversy during last year's general election process over alleged 'unfair treatment of non-Lee Jae-myung candidates', with conducting the public opinion survey for the June 3 presidential primary. In response, the party noted, "We believe there were no issues with the service execution."
The Democratic Party of Korea's Election Management Committee, on the 18th, issued a statement under the name of Chairman Park Beom-gye, saying, "The committee determined that there were no issues with SigAnal & Pulse, previously known as Research DNA, conducting the service related to the presidential primary."
SigAnal & Pulse is one of five companies conducting public opinion surveys for the Democratic Party of Korea's presidential primary. There are concerns that the company is essentially the same as 'Research DNA', which was excluded during last year's general election primary due to fairness controversies, as they share the same CEO. At that time, the company faced accusations of leading surveys unfavorable to non-Lee Jae-myung lawmakers by conducting polls that excluded sitting lawmakers in their electoral districts.
The Democratic Party of Korea's Election Management Committee stated regarding SigAnal & Pulse, "This company has participated in the party's public opinion survey services long before the last general election," adding, "While they voluntarily abandoned their service execution regarding candidate suitability surveys during the last general election, they have not faced sanctions from the party as a result."
They continued, stating, "Since then, they have consistently performed public opinion survey duties, and were selected by lottery as one of five companies that applied for the service for this presidential primary."
Meanwhile, the non-Lee Jae-myung faction is expressing opposition, citing concerns over fairness.
The campaign of candidate Kim Dong-yeon from the Democratic Party of Korea issued a statement this morning, saying, "The response from the party's Election Management Committee is disappointing. Did they really know nothing?" adding, "There's no way they could not have known. If they didn't know, that would represent serious incompetence, and if they concealed it knowing, then it constitutes a serious crime undermining the legitimacy of the primary."
They further stated, "The first survey results will be announced this weekend. We must thoroughly dispel the raised allegations."
They called on Chairman Park Beom-gye and the party leadership to ensure thorough fact-finding, accountability for those responsible, and corresponding measures, as well as to take actions that restore trust in the primary process and clarify how they plan to address the problematic company.