Controversy over eligibility for the upcoming party convention has arisen as Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Song Young-gil and former Democratic Research Institute vice president Kim Yong stated on July 17 that "the time taken by the prosecution cannot be a disqualifying factor," requesting the party leadership to recognize exceptions for party member eligibility.
The two issued a joint statement, asserting, "A party convention held while excluding victims of prosecution will raise questions about its legitimacy," and added, "The empty spaces in the party dues payment records represent the time lost to prosecution." Both have declared their candidacies for the party leadership and the Supreme Council, but concerns have been raised that their candidacies violate party regulations that grant eligibility only to party members.
According to party rules, to be eligible for candidacy in party elections, a member must have paid dues at least six times within the year prior to the exercise of rights. Currently, both individuals do not meet this criterion. Song left the party in 2023 amid allegations of distributing money envelopes and rejoined on February 27 of this year, meaning he has not yet reached the six-month mark as of the candidate registration date of July 16. Kim, on the other hand, was sentenced to prison in a second trial for accepting bribes from private developers in the Daejang-dong project and reportedly could not pay dues due to account freezes during his incarceration.
However, if significant reasons are acknowledged, the Supreme Council can decide on exceptions regarding candidacy rights after a vote. Yet, during discussions the previous day, differing opinions emerged between factions supporting former leader Lee Jae-myung and those aligned with the party's traditional base, preventing a conclusion. Consequently, the leadership plans to hold another closed meeting to continue discussions.
They further urged, "The Supreme Council should refer the exception recognition issue to the party affairs committee, and the committee should convene without delay to make a decision in accordance with the regulations, ensuring no disruption to the candidate registration schedule." They also called on the leadership to demonstrate that this decision is unrelated to calculations of advantage or disadvantage in the party convention. Notably, Song indicated that he may consider filing for an injunction as a last resort.
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.