(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Jeong-jin and Oh Gyu-jin = Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is facing multi-layered challenges just two months after taking office.
The approval rating of the party, which had promised to increase by 10 percentage points by the 100th day (24th) of its inauguration, actually fell compared to before, and the party was forced into a situation where it had to gather opinions and resolve conflicts within the party over the differences of opinion within the party surrounding the push for a government investigation into Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae, factional conflict due to the Shincheonji controversy, and the issue of merger with the Fatherland Innovation Party.
The immediate question is how to lead a response to the issue of Chief Justice Cho.
As calls for the impeachment of Chief Justice Cho erupted again within the party after the so-called re-nomination incident, Representative Kim set the tone at the end of last month, saying, "We will proceed step by step, including a national investigation."
This is analyzed to be based on the decision to conduct a government investigation first and then review the situation, leaving open the possibility of impeachment.
Accordingly, the Democratic Party decided to push for national anthem first, but the decision was postponed due to opposition coming out at the general meeting on the 3rd.
The leadership, including Representative Kim, plans to decide whether to pursue a government investigation through a general meeting this week, but it does not seem easy to gather consensus.
Even opinions opposing the national anthem are divided in their orientation. While there is a hard-line argument that we should immediately move toward impeachment instead of national anthem, there is also a cautious argument that we should focus on the people's livelihood rather than national anthem.
The fact that Chief Justice Cho will retire in June next year is also a variable in terms of effectiveness.
There is even speculation within the National Assembly that the government investigation has already “faded out,” but in this case, there is a possibility that the hardliners’ will for judicial reform will be questioned.
Despite Representative Kim's repeated apologies, the controversy within the party surrounding the suspicion of mass membership of Shincheonji members has not subsided.
Representative Kim's side is in the position that the suspicion issue has been resolved after the party's investigation results were viewed on the 6th.
However, after reviewing the report, the pro-Qing Party group again raised the theory of responsibility for Representative Kim, saying that they could not find any evidence to support the 'secret three-party alliance' or the systematic intervention of Shincheonji members in the national convention.
Representative Kim raised the suspicion of a 'secret three-party alliance' targeting former Representative Jeong, but the level of attack is actually increasing, saying that it has been confirmed that there is no basis.
According to multiple officials who have read the results of the Shincheonji investigation, the number of general members presumed to be Shincheonji members is known to be approximately 14,000. Among them, it is reported that there are about 8,000 members of the Rights Party.
In a phone call with Yonhap News, a pro-Blue Party figure said, “The number of Rights Party members with voting rights is about one-third,” and “For it to be an organized intervention, the impact on the national convention would have been minimal.”
The Democratic Party's rules grant membership to members who pay more than 1,000 won per month.
In order to exercise the right to vote in elections for public office and party positions, the right to vote is granted to members of the party who joined the party 6 months prior to the effective date of exercising the right and who have paid party dues more than 6 times within 12 months prior to the effective date of exercising the right.
It is known that the Democratic Party leadership estimated the number of Shincheonji Rights Party members with voting rights at the August 17 National Convention to be 3,300.
The issue of merger with the Innovation Party continues to be complicated.
Former Representative Jeong is putting pressure on the party by publicly raising the 'January next year deadline', but within the party, the solidarity theory (Rep. Song Young-gil), not the merger theory, is not easy.
Representative Kim is also carefully approaching the merger issue. In this situation, the Innovation Party is increasing the level of pressure, saying it will even nominate assassins from the Democratic Party in the next general election.
There is some advice within the party that Representative Kim should lead the party with leadership and take steps toward harmony, but many predict that it will not be easy to achieve an actual breakthrough.
The analysis is that differences of opinion or conflict within the party surrounding major issues are linked to competition for leadership in the party due to the division of the ruling party's support base.
Furthermore, some predict that as the 2028 general election approaches, conflicts between factions will intensify as the issue of nomination rights becomes more entangled.
A ruling party figure said, “Over time, a full-scale intra-party struggle may actually proceed,” and “For Representative Kim, if the crisis is resolved well, it could be an opportunity.”
