\n An internal rift is widening within the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) over candidate nominations for the April 10 parliamentary elections, with accusations of what some call a “massacre” of those not aligned with party leader Lee Jae-myung.<\/p>\n
The party is scheduled to convene a general meeting of its lawmakers later on Tuesday to discuss the electoral map, while a string of lawmakers considered non-mainstream members are expected to express deep discontent over what they perceive as a tilted nomination rule designed to exclude them.<\/p>\n
They argue that several non-Lee faction lawmakers were categorized among the lower 10 percent or 20 percent in terms of legislative activity, resulting in demerit points when competing with other contenders in party primaries.<\/p>\n
Rep. Kim Young-joo, a four-term lawmaker and deputy National Assembly speaker widely perceived to be outside the pro-Lee faction, announced earlier that she was placed in the lower 20 percent category and declared her intention to leave the party.<\/p>\n
O
\nther DP lawmakers, who were denied nominations or included in the list of underperformers, have also intensified criticism of the party leadership, with Rep. Noh Woong-rae launching a hunger strike and Rep. Lee Su-jin announcing her departure from the party.<\/p>\n
On Monday, Rep. Ko Min-jung, who is also considered outside the pro-Lee faction, boycotted a meeting of the party’s Supreme Council in protest of the way the party nominates candidates, while Rep. Sul Hoon also hinted he could leave the party.<\/p>\n
Both DP Chairman Lee and the party’s nomination committee chief, Im Hyug-baeg, have rejected such accusations, arguing that the party is selecting candidates in a fair and reasonable manner.<\/p>\n
However, the party’s nomination results reveal that a majority of 51 people who secured party nominations without undergoing primaries are considered close to Lee.<\/p>\n
The party is also set to announce whether to nominate Im Jong-seok, a former presidential chief of staff under the previous Moon Jae-in administration, who has ap
\nplied for candidacy in Seoul’s Jung-Seongdong district.<\/p>\n
Im Hyug-baeg, however, has hinted that the party could nominate Im, a former two-term lawmaker, for Seoul’s Songpa Ward, a traditional conservative stronghold where his chances of winning are slim. The outcome could potentially deepen the rift between those aligned with Moon and those in the pro-Lee faction.<\/p>\n
Source: Yonhap News Agency<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
An internal rift is widening within the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) over candidate nominations for the April 10 parliamentary elections, with accusations of what some call a “massacre” of those not aligned with party leader Lee Jae-myung.<\/p>\n
…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n