The Democratic Party of Korea on Sunday recruited Park Ji-won, a supreme council member who rose from the rank-and-file, and Lim Mun-young, vice chairman of the presidential National AI Strategy Committee, ahead of the June 3 National Assembly by-elections.
Party leader Chung Chung-rae, who also serves as chairman of the talent recruitment committee, held a welcoming ceremony for the two recruits at the National Assembly the same day. Chung helped the pair into the party's blue jackets, while Secretary General Cho Seung-rae presented them with bouquets. Park, a native of Jeonju in North Jeolla Province, is expected to be given a strategic nomination to run in the Gunsan-Gimje-Buan B constituency in North Jeolla, while Lim, who hails from Gwangju, is likely to be nominated in Gwangju's Gwangsan B district.
Introducing Park, Chung said, "He is a living witness who proved the value of party member sovereignty as the first supreme council member in the party's history to be elected from the rank-and-file, beating a fierce 115-to-1 competition," adding that he is also "tailor-made as a son-in-law of Gimje." Park responded, "I will ignite the momentum for election victory starting from North Jeolla. North Jeolla is where I was born and raised." He also pledged to serve as "a reliable bridge connecting the central and the regional, and linking the experience of the senior generation with the future of the next generation."
Regarding Lim, Chung said, "He is a top AI expert who laid the cornerstone for Korea to become one of the world's top three AI powers, a goal actively pursued by the Lee Jae-myung administration." Chung added, "I hope he will team up with former Presidential Senior Secretary for AI and Future Policy Ha Jung-woo to form a dynamic duo and play a major role in AI legislation at the National Assembly." Lim said, "I will return to Gwangju and Mt. Mudeung, which raised me, and transform the city into the most advanced in the AI era and the leading region in energy transition." He added, "I will work closely with candidate Ha, who is running in Busan, in a 'race to excel.'"
On concerns about the consecutive recruitment of figures who had been designing the nation's AI policy, such as Ha and Lim, Kim Young-jin, vice chairman of the talent recruitment committee, said, "As follow-up work, it will have an even greater impact for the two to operate in the National Assembly, providing legislative and policy support and building a nationwide flow and direction." He further explained, "As the ruling party, the synergy effect will be greater as we jointly design and craft AI policies through consultation among the party, government, and presidential office."
