Han Ji-hye, a Yeonsu-gu district councilor in Incheon who was elected on the Democratic Party of Korea ticket in the June 3 local elections, left the party just three days into her term, prompting a backlash from local party members.
Members of the Democratic Party's Yeonsu-B district committee, holding voting rights, issued a statement Friday, denouncing Han's departure as "grab-and-run" politics.
"The sudden defection of a district councilor just three days into her term is a betrayal of democracy and voters," they said. "Han has broken the golden 7-7 split between the ruling and opposition parties, eliminating the brake that would have stopped a particular party's majority tyranny and administrative overreach." With Han's departure, the Yeonsu-gu council has been reshaped into seven People Power Party members, six Democratic Party members, and one independent.
The party members said they plan to file a complaint with judicial authorities, characterizing Han's actions as inducement to profit under the Public Official Election Act and bribery under the Criminal Act. "Han received the Democratic Party's nomination, was assigned a ballot number, and was elected without a vote," they noted. "Because her election was made possible by the residents' trust in and support for the Democratic Party, leaving the party immediately after her term began is an act that betrays the will of voters who trusted the party and cast their ballots." They urged that "Han must explain the circumstances of her defection before the residents and immediately resign from her council seat."
Han is reported to have left the party citing internal conflict within the district council.
