KB News Desk
DAEJEON ― Rep. Kim Min-seok, a four-term lawmaker and former prime minister, won the ruling Democratic Party of Korea leadership on Monday, strengthening President Lee Jae Myung’s support base in the party.
Kim received 54.08 percent of the combined votes at the party’s national convention in Daejeon, defeating former party chair Rep. Jung Chung-rae’s 45.92 percent in his bid for another term.
Kim’s victory was confirmed in the ranked-choice vote. Second-choice votes listed on ballots favoring eliminated candidate Rep. Song Young-gil — considered Kim’s ally — were aggregated in the convention outcome.
Kim’s two-year term as party chair is effective upon victory. Unless he steps down without completing his term, Kim will play a lead role in the party’s general election campaign scheduled in 2028.
The shift could give Lee greater latitude in steering the ruling bloc and help ease friction between the party and Cheong Wa Dae that periodically surfaced under Jung’s leadership.
Monday’s election result combines votes cast over the past three weeks through Sunday by more than 1.52 million eligible dues-paying members, whose turnout was 50.35 percent, with ballots cast Monday by over 17,000 party delegates, whose turnout reached 80.98 percent, as well as the results of a public opinion poll.
With Monday’s victory, Kim will likely gain majority control over the ruling party’s nine-member decision-making body, the Supreme Council, pointing to a stronger pro-Lee presence in the liberal party’s top decision-making body.
The new party leader, however, will also need to find a balance with his opposing faction within the party.
Rep. Choi Min-hee, a two-term lawmaker aligned with former party leader Jung Chung-rae, topped the Supreme Council race with 18.35 percent of the vote, making her the council’s senior elected member and effectively the party’s No. 3 figure.
Two other pro-Jung candidates, Reps. Han Min-soo and Lee Sung-yoon, also secured seats on the Supreme Council with 15.86 percent and 16.30 percent, respectively.
From the pro-Lee camp, first-term lawmakers Reps. Park Sun-won and Seo Mi-hwa won seats with 17.57 percent and 16.60 percent.
Im Yong, a longtime aide to President Lee Jae Myung, fell short with 15.26 percent.
The result came after two other pro-Lee candidates, Reps. Kim Young-ho and Lim Mi-ae, withdrew from the race Sunday night and urged party members and delegates to rally behind the remaining candidates aligned with the president.
Still, Kim Min-seok will exercise his majority power in the decision-making body, as the Supreme Council consists of the party chair, the floor leader, five elected members and two members appointed by Kim himself.
In his acceptance speech, Kim pledged to improve the party’s relationship with the presidential office — one in which the party is supportive of the presidential office and at the same time “creatively horizontal.”
Kim also said he would embrace his competitors in the three-way race, including his rival Jung, to overcome concerns from outside the party.
After the convention, Jung apologized to his supporters for his defeat, saying he could not meet the expectations of his supporters who had “lost by numbers, but won by the value and spirit.”
