Kim Min-seok of the Democratic Party of Korea moved to keep the party in line on the 31st, saying about a merger with the Rebuilding Korea Party, "For now, senior leadership figures, or all lawmakers, should refrain as much as possible from expressing personal opinions."
At the supreme council meeting that morning, Kim said, "Regarding the Rebuilding Korea Party, we have already declared that we will unconditionally align in broad terms," and added, "No one yet knows whether the method will be a merger or a non-merger format."
He went on, "Because the final outcome is unknown, it is difficult for anyone in the party to predict at present, and the whole nation also knows there are pros and cons within the party," adding, "We will handle it through democratic procedures, confirming the overwhelming will of the members of both parties."
Kim also said, "For now, senior leadership figures, or all lawmakers, should refrain as much as possible from expressing personal opinions."
Kim asked the Rebuilding Korea Party to quickly set up a channel for talks on integration and alignment. Kim said, "Rep. Park Beom-kye holds the primary overall authority over the related discussions, and among them, Rep. Lee Hae-sik holds full authority over contacts with the Innovation Party," adding, "We would appreciate it if the Innovation Party side would also promptly designate a channel through which we can talk."
Meanwhile, Kim also stressed handling issues such as the party's dual membership problem, reportedly related to the Rebuilding Korea Party, and the controversy over the convention polling before discussions on integration and alignment.
Kim told Supreme Council member Park Sun-won, who leads the party membership cleanup task force (TF), "Because the dual membership problem is also a very important prerequisite issue, it is not a precondition but must be handled as a parallel task," and added, "To handle the matter transparently, please prepare and report back as soon as possible."
Kim also said the previous day on X (formerly Twitter) that, regarding allegations that Lee Jong-won of SisaTapa manipulated a convention poll, "We checked whether he is a party member and ordered the Ethics Inspection Team to conduct an emergency inspection." The allegation is that on the public opinion poll conducted on the 14th and 15th, Lee guided viewers to respond with regions or age groups different from reality.
Chief spokesperson Park Sung-joon said about the allegation, "We plan to conduct a fact-finding investigation, and after that, we will examine not only the details but also whether legal disciplinary action is possible."