It was learned on the 12th that Jo Seung-rae, secretary-general of the Democratic Party of Korea, and Lee Hae-min, secretary-general of the Rebuilding Korea Party, will meet this week. With about 50 days left until the June 3 local elections, the constituency where Rebuilding Korea Party leader Cho Kuk will run has not been decided. Attention is on whether the two will discuss Cho's candidacy when they meet.
According to ChosunBiz reporting compiled that day, the secretaries-general of the Democratic Party and the Rebuilding Korea Party are set to hold a closed-door meeting early this week. The two parties are said to have agreed to discuss the issue of "alliance and integration." However, with less than two months left before the elections and Cho's constituency still undecided, there is speculation that it will naturally become a topic of discussion.
Cho plans to gather opinions from party members and announce a constituency around the 15th to 20th. Earlier, many expected a run in the Seoul metropolitan area or in Busan. Recently, after lawmaker Choo Mi-ae was confirmed as the Democratic Party's candidate for Gyeonggi governor, places that became vacant such as Hanam-gap in Gyeonggi Province have also been mentioned as potential constituencies for Cho.
However, in political circles, there is speculation that the Democratic Party may be passive in the talks. With President Lee Jae-myung's approval ratings running high, there is little reason to form an alliance with the Rebuilding Korea Party, they say. Earlier, when Democratic Party leader Jung Chung-rae proposed a merger with the Rebuilding Korea Party, a "backroom deal" rumor emerged, which is a burden for the party leadership. At the time, there was talk that "Jung privately promised to yield a position to Cho." As the controversy continued, Jung said he would not pursue merger talks for the time being.