Park Ji-won, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, stated on June 24 that "former party leader Song Young-gil conveyed during a dinner with President Lee Jae-myung that he is considering unification with Prime Minister Kim Min-seok ahead of the August 17 party convention, which could consolidate votes in a runoff election."
During an appearance on CBS Radio's "Park Seong-tae's News Show," Park revealed, "I spoke with former leader Song yesterday," adding that he heard President Lee responded positively, encouraging him to proceed. Song reportedly had a private dinner with President Lee last week at the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, Seoul.
Park continued, "Song mentioned that if Jung Cheong-rae runs, he would also consider entering the race. If unification occurs in a three-way race, it is conceivable that Song could be elected. We cannot predict the outcome in a three-way scenario."
Meanwhile, Jung Cheong-rae announced his resignation during a Supreme Council meeting held earlier that morning. The Democratic Party has transitioned to a leadership system under acting floor leader Han Byeong-do.
In expressing his resignation, Jung stated, "I am a political partner of President Lee Jae-myung," emphasizing his role as the chair of the Legal Affairs Committee during the December 3 emergency martial law, which led to the impeachment of former President Yoon Seok-youl. His appeal for support at the party convention is interpreted as leveraging his connection with President Lee, who was the party leader at that time.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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