The Democratic Party of Korea's race for its next leader will be contested by five candidates. Fourteen people registered as candidates for the Supreme Council. With Rep. Song Young-gil and Kim Yong, former deputy director of the Democratic Research Institute, both permitted to run despite disputes over their eligibility, the field of candidates for party leader and Supreme Council members at the Democratic Party's August 17 national convention has been finalized.
The Democratic Party's Central Election Management Committee said on the 17th that five candidates completed their registration: former Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, Rep. Ko Min-jung, former leader Jung Chung-rae, former Gangjin County councilor Kim Bo-mi, and former leader Song Young-gil (in order of ballot number).
For the Supreme Council, 14 candidates registered: Rep. Park Sun-won, Rep. Lee Gun-tae, Rep. Lee Sung-yoon, former Democratic Research Institute deputy director Kim Yong, Rep. Park Sung-joon, Gwangmyeong Mayor Park Seung-won, policy committee deputy chair Jung Min-chul, Rep. Han Min-soo, Rep. Seo Mi-hwa, Rep. Choi Min-hee, Rep. Kim Young-ho, Rep. Lim Mi-ae, former lawmaker Shin Gye-ryun, and Kim Hyung-nam, former secretary-general of the Center for Military Human Rights Korea (in order of ballot number).
The deposit for this preliminary contest is 20 million won for both party leader and Supreme Council candidates, with a 50% reduction offered to non-parliamentary young candidates aged 39 or younger. The party leader preliminary contest will combine online voting by central committee-level members at 35%, online voting by party members with voting rights at 35%, and a public opinion poll at 30%. The main contest will apply a "preferential voting system" in which voters rank the candidates. The Supreme Council preliminary contest will reflect a ratio of 50% central committee members and 50% party members with voting rights, and will be conducted through a "two-name endorsement method" in which central committee members select two candidates.
The Democratic Party will narrow the field to three party leader candidates and eight Supreme Council candidates through the preliminary contest starting on the 21st. The regional contests will begin next month on the 1st in South Chungcheong, North Chungcheong, Daejeon and Sejong, followed by Ulsan, Busan and South Gyeongsang (the 2nd), Jeju and Incheon (the 8th), Gangwon, Daegu and North Gyeongsang (the 9th), and North Jeolla, South Jeolla and Gwangju (the 15th), before concluding the main contest voting in Gyeonggi and Seoul on the 16th. Five elected Supreme Council members will be chosen.
