In the Democratic Party of Korea's Aug. 17 national convention, candidate Kim Min-seok, who is competing with Jung Chung-rae for the party leader post, appeared on Kim Ou-joon's YouTube channel, rebutted Jung's various attacks, and signaled confidence about winning.
On the morning of the 12th, appearing on Kim Ou-joon's YouTube show "It's Hard to Be Humble News Factory," Kim was asked by Kim, "If you are elected, is there also a position for Jung?" Kim said, "Isn't it inappropriate for Jung to take on an individual role?" and added, "A former leader serves as a senior adviser to the party."
Kim predicted he would maintain an edge in the primary results. He said, "I'm not fixated on a specific target," but added, "The ultimate goal is to settle it without a preference vote by combining first-place votes and polling." In this Democratic Party leadership primary, a preference voting system is being used; if no one wins a majority, the second-choice votes of the third-place candidate are added to determine a majority winner. Kim's remarks are interpreted as meaning he aims to secure a majority without a preference vote and clinch the win without a runoff.
Kim also drew a firm line in response to Kim's aggressive questions. When Kim asked about the "Lee Un-ju Telegram allegation," Kim said, "I've said it many times. It's not true," dismissing it. The "Lee Un-ju Telegram allegation" arose when a Telegram conversation Lee, a lawmaker, had on the plenary floor was captured by the media, prompting suspicion that the cabinet member who sent messages such as "Secret deal? Attack material," "Must reveal whether there's a secret deal," and "Party name change not possible, no divvying up," regarding a merger with the Rebuilding Korea Party, was Kim.
He also pushed back against Jung's criticism of Kim over an interview in which Kim criticized then-party leader Lee Jae-myung right after the 2022 local elections. He said, "I strongly criticized immediate past leader Lee Jae-myung," adding, "The next day, President Lee Jae-myung came to my office again and we always talked together."
He continued, "Knowing that I was criticizing, I told him on principle that the party leader should take responsibility for the local election defeat," and "(Then-leader Lee Jae-myung) accepted that and entrusted me with the election, for which I'm grateful." He added, "It's not right to compare President Lee Jae-myung, who was criticized at the time, and leader Jung Chung-rae as equals."