DP: No Candidate Consolidation by District Exchange... Internal Discussions on Special Prosecution Act on Fabricated Indictments

Press Briefing 30 Days Before Local Elections

By-election Nominations to Be Finalized by the 6th... Election Committee Launch Next Week

Introduction of AI Election Prediction System and Candidate Application

On May 4, the Democratic Party of Korea drew a clear line regarding the unification of candidates for the June 3 local elections, stating, "There will be no unification deals made at the central party level by exchanging regions. There will also be no party-to-party negotiations." The party also announced that it would determine the details and timing of the so-called "Special Prosecution Act on Fabricated Prosecution," which some interpret as granting the special prosecutor the authority to drop indictments, through internal discussions.

Cho Seungrae, Secretary-General of the Democratic Party of Korea, held a press conference at the National Assembly that afternoon and said, "We will not engage in exchanges because there is a risk of distorting the public’s will." He continued, "However, we are proposing and working to reach agreements on unification methods that can properly reflect the will of the people."

He added, "In Ulsan, there have been considerable calls for unification among candidates for the metropolitan mayor, five district mayors, and metropolitan council members." He explained, "Civil society groups in Ulsan have proposed unification, arguing that it is necessary to create a structure that would enable opposition candidates to receive even a single vote or just 1% more than the People Power Party candidate."

He went on to say, "Our party agrees with that point, which is why we are proceeding with discussions. These discussions are specifically taking place in Ulsan, which is why I mentioned it. There have been no related discussions at the candidate or regional level in other areas."

Cho Seungrae, Secretary General of the Democratic Party of Korea, is holding a press conference related to the local elections D-30 at the National Assembly on the 4th. Photo by Kim Hyunmin

Regarding the Special Prosecution Act on Fabricated Prosecution, Cho stated, "We cannot ignore the impact it may have on the elections," but also said, "If the fabricated prosecution is clear, we cannot just overlook it." He added, "There are various opinions within the party regarding the timing and specifics of the special prosecution. We plan to proceed with internal discussions while assessing these opinions."

On April 30, the Democratic Party of Korea introduced the Special Prosecution Act on Fabricated Prosecution to allow a special prosecutor to investigate alleged fabricated prosecutions in cases such as the Ssangbangwool North Korea remittance case and the Daejang-dong and Wirye New Town development corruption cases. Interpretations have emerged that this law could grant the special prosecutor the authority to drop indictments.

Cho Seungrae, Secretary-General of the Democratic Party of Korea, is holding a press briefing related to the local elections D-30 at the National Assembly on the 4th. Photo by Kim Hyunmin

Additionally, Secretary-General Cho announced that the Democratic Party plans to launch the "National Normalization Election Committee" next week. He explained, "Appointments are being made based on the principles of broad unity and inclusiveness," and added, "The goal is to form an election committee that unites all the party’s capabilities, large or small."

Regarding strategic nominations for the parliamentary by-elections, he explained, "If possible, we hope to finalize them by the 6th." The constituencies where strategic nominations have not yet been made are: Dalseong-gun in Daegu, Gwangsan-eul in Gwangju, Gongju·Buyeo·Cheongyang, and Gunsan·Gimje·Buan (both A and B) in North Jeolla Province.

Secretary-General Cho also announced the adoption of "Oracle Eye," an AI-based predictive system, for this election. The system analyzes communities and media reports on specific issues to generate reports. He also explained that the party has introduced the "Blue Notebook" application for candidates, which provides guidance from city and provincial election committees as well as information on campaign pledges.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.