On the 16th, a day before the Aug. 17 party convention that will determine the next leadership of the Democratic Party of Korea, competition within the party among factions to secure the final elected supreme council seat is intensifying.
Until the Honam regional primary results released the previous day (the 15th), the pro-Myung faction held a majority within the electable range (top five) with Park Sun-won, Seo Mi-hwa and Kim Yong, but with the capital area primary results announced that day pushing out candidate Kim Yong, the pro-Chung (pro-Jung Chung-rae) faction gained the majority with Choi Min-hee, Lee Sung-yoon and Han Min-su.
According to the central election commission of the party on the 16th, in the cumulative vote totals of dues-paying members by supreme council candidate, candidate Choi Min-hee reclaimed the lead with 16.91%. Candidate Park Sun-won, who had risen to first place in the earlier Honam primary, recorded 16.60% and fell to second.
Following them, Seo Mi-hwa (15.18%), Lee Sung-yoon (13.94%) and Han Min-su (13.77%) entered the electable range. Among them, candidate Lee Sung-yoon had been sixth after the Honam primary but surged in the capital area to rise to fourth.
In the elimination range from sixth to eighth were candidate Kim Yong at 13.62%, candidate Lim Mi-ae at 6.62% and candidate Kim Young-ho at 3.37%. Candidate Kim Yong, who had been within the electable range (fourth) after the Honam primary, fell into the elimination range with the capital area results that day.
With the capital area results that day, all pro-Myung candidates ended up in the elimination range, while all pro-Chung candidates made the electable range. Immediately after the capital area primary ended that day, pro-Myung candidates outside the electable range resigned one after another, appealing for "support for candidate Kim Yong."
Candidate Lim Mi-ae disclosed her withdrawal and said, "Please choose candidate Kim Yong. Make candidate Park Sun-won the senior supreme council member, and protect candidate Seo Mi-hwa's election," adding, "There should be at least three supreme council members to work with party leader Kim Min-seok."
Candidate Kim Young-ho also said, "If candidate Kim Yong, a lifelong comrade of President Lee Jae-myung, does not enter the leadership, it will be a loss for the entire Democratic Party," adding, "I ask that the one vote you were going to give me be gathered for candidate Kim Yong."
Party leader candidate Kim Min-seok also said, "Candidates Lim Mi-ae and Kim Young-ho resigned to consolidate votes for candidates Park Sun-won and Kim Yong," adding, "It would be really good if Park Sun-won as senior supreme council member and Seo Mi-hwa and Kim Yong as supreme council members formed the new leadership."
In the party's supreme council election, the candidate who finishes first becomes the senior supreme council member. There is no difference in authority from other supreme council members, but it is a symbolic post. If the current lineup holds, candidate Choi Min-hee will become the senior supreme council member.
As pro-Myung candidates outside the electable range resigned while appealing in succession for "support for Kim Yong," the pro-Chung camp pushed back. Candidate Choi Min-hee criticized on her Facebook page, saying, "Candidates Lim Mi-ae and Kim Young-ho pulled a last-minute trick resignation," and "the talk of Daegu–North Gyeongsang values is a run lacking sincerity." She added, "Fellow delegates, please judge this collusion unfolding now. Give strength to Team Jung Chung-rae."
Candidate Lee Sung-yoon criticized the resignations of candidates Kim Young-ho and Lim Mi-ae, asking, "Were they forced by others to resign?" and saying, "It is old-school politics that does not care in the least about what party members and the public think." He added, "Dear party members, please punish this outdated behavior that ignores the choices of the public and party members."
Candidate Han Min-su, who is on the cusp of the electable range, said, "The final moment remains when the new leadership will be decided by your choice, delegates, tomorrow. I plead earnestly and again earnestly," adding, "Please help Han Min-su."
The party will announce the final results at the 3rd regular national party members' convention in Daejeon on the 17th. It will combine and release the online vote of delegates (excluding dues-paying members) conducted the same day and the public opinion poll results conducted from the previous day to that day (30% of the total) with the dues-paying members' vote results conducted so far.