Ruling Party Leadership Contenders Clash in First TV Debate: Kim Minseok vs Jeong Cheongrae Face Off

"Trampling on the Cross" vs. "Outdated Politics" War of Words

"Remember, I'm Closer to Lee Jaemyung" Rival Claims

Clash Over the Process of Abolishing the Right of Supplementary Investigation

Debates Over Local Election Assessment and

In the first televised debate held on July 29 for the election of the Democratic Party's party leader at the 8·17 National Convention, candidates Song Younggil, Jeong Cheongrae, and Kim Minseok (in ballot order) engaged in a heated war of words over issues such as prosecution reform, party-government relations, evaluation of local elections, controversy over pro-Lee Jae-myung affiliations, and factional politics. In particular, Kim Minseok and Jeong Cheongrae, who are considered the two main contenders, exchanged sharp remarks and clashed throughout the debate, while Song Younggil also joined in by pressing both candidates on key issues.

On the 29th, at MBC in Mapo-gu, Seoul, candidates Kim Minseok (from left), Jeong Cheongrae, and Song Younggil posed for a commemorative photo during a televised debate for the election of the Democratic Party's party leader. July 29, 2026. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers' Group

During the debate at MBC that day, Kim Minseok emphasized the need for stable party-government relations, stating, "If the ruling party's relationship with the government becomes unstable, it affects election outcomes, and even the stock market is impacted." Jeong Cheongrae advocated for unity and reform within the party, saying, "I will unite those who supported Presidents Kim Dae-jung, Roh Moo-hyun, Moon Jae-in, and Lee Jae-myung." Song Younggil targeted both candidates by saying, "Stock prices are plummeting, and housing prices are soaring. People are feeling anxious because of self-serving politics and factional infighting."

The debate over prosecution reform was also fierce. Jeong Cheongrae argued, "There was a lot of dissatisfaction among party members with the government's plan, but I took the initiative in revising it to everyone's satisfaction." In response, Kim Minseok countered, "At the time, Representative Jeong Cheongrae told us to send the government's first prosecution reform plan as is, so we submitted it. It is difficult to understand why he's now claiming to have fixed the government's plan himself." Kim continued, "The government finalized its position in May, focusing on abolishing the supplementary investigation authority and pushed for swift processing, but wasn't it actually the party that delayed the discussions?" Song Younggil also joined in, saying, "Both of you reportedly advocated abolishing the supplementary investigation authority, so why did misunderstandings between the party and the government arise, creating a situation where even the president ended up being criticized?"

During the floor debate, the two main candidates directly confronted each other over the evaluation of the local elections. Kim Minseok questioned, "When Jeong Cheongrae was party leader, the Busan election suffered due to a slip of the tongue, and the Pyeongtaek election was not properly supported because there was no consensus on the party's stance. Do you have the leadership necessary to win next year's Seoul mayoral election and the general election the year after?"

Jeong Cheongrae retorted, "Kim Minseok has never been the party leader, so he wouldn't know. Elections are led by the party leader, not the head of the election campaign headquarters. I personally directed the elections as the party leader." Kim Minseok rebutted, "You say that, but that's only because you have never held such positions. In the end, you failed to lead any major elections to victory."

The controversy continued over writer Yoo Si-min's comments about President Lee Jae-myung. Kim Minseok criticized, "Is it really acceptable for the leadership to remain silent on statements that are almost curses against the president?" Jeong Cheongrae responded, "I'd rather not see 'stepping on the cross.' Approaching every criticism as pro-Lee if you criticize or anti-Lee if you don't is just too harsh."

The candidates also clashed over the issue of factional politics. Kim Minseok criticized, "Although Jeong Cheongrae has been the loudest critic of factional politics, he is now engaging in bare-faced outdated tactics like the 'birthday choice' and 'odd-even choice,' which have never been seen in the Democratic Party." Jeong Cheongrae responded, "These were all voluntary actions taken by party members. Kim Minseok has been outside the party for so long that he doesn't seem to understand recent party history." He added, "In fact, claiming that all those close to Jeong Cheongrae should lose and only those close to another candidate should win is the real outdated factional politics."

The recent KOSPI plunge also emerged as a major issue. Jeong Cheongrae apologized, saying, "As a responsible National Assembly member of the ruling party, I am sorry." He continued, "The stock that once hit 9,300 fell as low as 5,600—a huge fluctuation. With 20 million people investing in stocks, imagine how much damage and sense of loss there must have been."

Jeong Cheongrae identified single-stock leveraged ETFs as a key factor behind recent stock market volatility and insisted that even a suspension of trading should be considered. He asserted, "Why not halt the trading of single-stock leveraged ETFs? Stock investors feel as if no one is looking out for them. Decisive political and policy actions must be taken where necessary."

On the other hand, Song Younggil took a cautious stance regarding suspending trading, arguing that strengthening investment regulations should come first. He pointed out that, starting from July 31, the minimum deposit requirement would rise from 10 million won to 30 million won, and individual investor limits would be introduced, so it is necessary to first observe the policy's impact. He added, "If suspending trading proves too difficult, raising the minimum deposit requirement to 50 million won should also be considered. Extraordinary measures such as activating the market stabilization fund are needed, and government officials should also be careful with remarks that could affect the market."

Kim Minseok also agreed that caution is needed before suspending trading and echoed Song Younggil's position. Kim stated, "While extraordinary measures are indeed necessary, whether suspending trading altogether is the right course of action should be carefully considered. If needed, the financial authorities should conduct thorough simulations of options such as raising the minimum deposit requirement to 50 million won before making any decisions."

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