Choi Bo-yoon, the party's senior spokesperson, told reporters after a meeting of the party's top leadership that Kim's nomination was not approved and had been sent back to the Seoul chapter.
Choi said a party-affiliation check from Kim's preliminary candidacy for the 8th local elections showed he appeared to have been registered with two or more parties, which could violate the Political Parties Act and the Public Official Election Act. Choi also cited concerns that Kim's explanation during an interview differed from the facts.
Bae criticized the move in a Facebook post, saying candidates submitted by the 17 city and provincial chapters can still be approved through a chapter revote even if the top leadership rejects them. "Are they now trying to intimidate candidates?" she wrote.
In a statement, the Seoul chapter said Kim confirmed when he first ran for office in 2022 that his Democratic Party membership from 2003 was still on record, and he immediately terminated it. The chapter said Kim was nominated as the People Power Party candidate for Jung-gu mayor and won in 2022, and it plans to confirm his recommendation through a revote of its nomination committee on April 24.
The party's central nomination committee later issued its own explanation, repeating that Kim appeared to have been registered with two or more parties based on the preliminary-candidate affiliation check for the 8th local elections. It also said Kim omitted past party affiliation and entered false information during the application process, and that his interview explanation differed from the facts, warranting a review of the nomination.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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