Ruling Party Faces Intensifying Leadership Race... Anti-Jeong Cheongrae Faction Pressures Jeong to Forgo Re-Election

Five-term Lawmaker Park Jiwon: "Jeong Cheongrae’s Leadership Should Resign and Not Run Again"

Jeong Cheongrae Courts Party Support... Moves to ‘Ddanzi Ilbo’ Bulletin Board

The competition for the next party leadership of the Democratic Party of Korea, ahead of the party convention scheduled for August, is already heating up. Lawmakers from the anti-Jeong Cheongrae faction are highlighting the issue of responsibility for the June 3 local election results, intensifying their pressure on Jeong Cheongrae, leader of the Democratic Party, to forgo seeking another term.

Kim Yong, former Deputy Director of the Institute for Democracy and a close aide to President Lee Jaemyung, criticized Jeong’s remarks on CBS Radio on June 11. Referring to Jeong’s comment that “The people are eternal, but power is short-lived,” Kim said, “As the party leader who oversaw the election and bears unlimited responsibility, saying ‘power is short-lived’ is something that should be heard from the opposition, not the ruling party. It was truly inappropriate and a serious gaffe.”

Jeong Chungrae, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is singing the national anthem at the 100th anniversary ceremony of the June 10th Independence Movement held at Gwanghwamun Square, Jongno-gu, Seoul on June 10, 2026. Photo by Jo Yongjun

Kim Yong also appeared on the radio the previous day, and when asked whether Jeong should give up his bid for another term as party leader, he responded, “Personally, I think that’s definitely something that could be considered,” thereby pushing back against Jeong’s leadership ambitions.

Park Ji-won, a five-term lawmaker known for being relatively unaffiliated with any faction, also called for the complete resignation of Jeong Cheongrae’s leadership, noting that the Democratic Party’s approval rating fell behind that of the People Power Party after the local elections. Park stated, “If you lose an election, you should use it as an opportunity to turn things around and get back on track. But if you take the path of conflict, you’re doomed. Jeong and the rest of the leadership should all resign and take responsibility by announcing they will not run again.”

In fact, following President Lee Jaemyung’s criticism of the election results—saying, “We lost where we should have won” and “This is by no means a success”—the internal pressure on Jeong has grown even more intense. Subsequently, during a farewell event for President Lee’s trip to Europe, party leaders were not invited, while Prime Minister Kim Minseok attended, fueling talk of “Jeong Cheongrae being sidelined.”

Within the leadership, Assemblywoman Lee Eonju resigned from her position as Supreme Council member on June 8, acknowledging responsibility for the election results, and Supreme Council member Hwang Myungseon has publicly declared he will not seek another term, further increasing the pressure.

However, Jeong continues to stress the importance of “the success of the Lee Jaemyung administration” while focusing on rallying party support for his own re-election. The previous day, he posted on the bulletin board of “Ddanzi Ilbo,” a platform frequented by his supporters, saying, “I spend many nights in deep anguish and regret, but in the end, my resolution is always to work for the success of the Lee Jaemyung administration.” He also wrote on social media, “If even cabinet meetings are broadcast live, why are caucus meetings closed? Many have asked for the caucus to be broadcast live as well. I will actively pursue this in line with the wishes of our party members.”

In addition, following the revision of the party constitution to introduce a one-person, one-vote system for delegates and dues-paying party members, the party’s executive committee approved amendments to the party rules the previous day. As a result, the one-person, one-vote system will now apply not only to the election of the party leader and Supreme Council members, but also to the selection of the National Committee Chairperson and the heads of provincial and city party chapters.

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