President Lee Jae-myung posted a message on X, formerly Twitter, on Saturday that could be interpreted as criticism of the party leadership, after excluding party leader Jung Chung-rae from the lineup seeing him off on his European tour. The move signaled the need for a leadership overhaul, even at the risk of appearing as a conflict between the party and the presidential office.
Pro-Jung faction members within the party believe the president and the pro-Lee faction are shifting the blame for the Seoul mayoral election defeat onto the current leadership, and are weighing how strongly to respond. Some within the ruling bloc say the party convention in August could become the starting point for a split.
The controversy began when President Lee mentioned the role of the ruling party through X during his tour. "They say that for politicians, an 'ethic of responsibility' that predicts and takes responsibility for outcomes is more important than an 'ethic of conviction' that prioritizes only good intentions while disregarding results," Lee said. "The ruling party's passion should be directed not at 'our camp' but at 'the entire nation.'" He added that the party "must play the role of a larger vessel that mediates conflict and minimizes backlash through constant dialogue and communication, rather than confrontation and exclusion."
Analysts said Lee's unusual emphasis on the domestic political issue of the ruling party's role during a state visit diplomatic schedule was a criticism of party leader Jung. The interpretation is that the president directed criticism at Jung for taking an independent course with re-election in mind, emphasizing matters such as abolishing the prosecution's supplementary investigation authority while keeping his hardline support base in view.
This marks the third time Lee has begun expressing dissatisfaction with the leadership, starting with his press conference marking the first anniversary of his inauguration, held after the June 3 local elections. At that press conference, Lee took aim at the leadership, saying, "Cursing, shouting and fighting is not a strong party but a small-minded one." Since then, he has indirectly revealed the need for a leadership overhaul by excluding the leadership from the lineups seeing him off on tours.
In response, the party leadership, including Jung, who is the likely candidate to seek re-election, focused on preventing the spread of the party-presidential office conflict controversy. Secretary General Cho Seung-rae held a press briefing Sunday and rebutted the interpretation of Lee's post, saying that "(the interpretation that it targeted the leadership) distorts the president's intent." Cho added, "Was it not made while talking about Max Weber's politics of responsibility, as the president himself renewing his resolve? I think approaching this by narrowing it down to a specific person or the leadership distorts the president's intent."
While the party leadership appeared preoccupied with damage control over the president's remarks for now, within the party there is a perception that the "leadership-bashing" is intended to pass off responsibility for the Seoul mayoral election defeat, and members are deliberating on a response. One leadership figure stressed, "Remarks by the presidential office's policy chief on excess profits in the semiconductor industry and excess tax revenue also affected the election," adding, "The presidential office also bears responsibility for the Seoul mayoral election defeat." Supreme Council member Park Kyu-hwan and others argued, "Is it right to raise the theory of a crushing local election defeat against the leadership just because we lost the Seoul mayoral race?" and "Then shouldn't the cabinet resign en masse rather than the leadership stepping down?"
In the face of the pro-Jung faction's pushback, the presidential office staff are showing an agitated response. In particular, they took issue with Jung's remark, made while assessing the local elections, that "the people are eternal, while a government is short-lived." A presidential office official reportedly expressed discontent, saying, "There are even concerns that the party will split, and in such a situation, isn't Jung's remark effectively a declaration to split the party?"
One Democratic Party lawmaker with weak factional ties said, "The party convention is effectively flowing into the shape of a proxy war centered on President Lee and the hardline support base led by the pro-Jung faction," adding, "There are concerns that if the rift deepens, the ruling bloc could split after the convention."
