Democratic Party Approves Former Chair Song's Return After 3 Years

The Democratic Party of Korea's supreme council voted on January 27 to reinstate former party chairman Song Young-gil, marking his return three years after leaving amid allegations of cash envelope distribution at a party convention.

Party leader Chung Chung-rae announced after the supreme council meeting in Daegu that "Song Young-gil's party membership reinstatement was decided through a closed-door meeting." He added, "We expect him to play a significant role in the Democratic Party's development and the success of the Lee Jae-myung administration."

Chung explained that former members who left without party request typically face a 20% penalty in primary elections. "Through a party-level request, we have eliminated the penalty deduction measure," he said.

Song resigned from the party in April 2023 after becoming embroiled in allegations of distributing cash envelopes and receiving illegal political funds at the 2021 party convention.

Song is reportedly focusing on running for the Incheon Gyeyang district—his former constituency—in the National Assembly by-election scheduled alongside the June 3 local elections. He vacated the seat when he ran for Seoul mayor in the 2022 local elections, passing the constituency to now-President Lee Jae-myung. Kim Nam-jun, former presidential spokesperson and a key aide to President Lee, has also expressed intention to run for the same district.