▲ Democratic Party Representative Jung Chung-rae delivers opening remarks at the 6th Central Committee meeting held at the National Assembly on June 16.
Democratic Party Representative Jung Chung-rae stated, "Just as the people are the owners of the country, party members are the owners of the party."
During the Central Committee meeting held at the National Assembly today (June 16), Representative Jung said, "It may seem like the party leader runs the party, but ultimately, it is the party members who do so."
"Among the many famous quotes by President Lee Jae-myung, I have always cherished and kept in my heart the saying, 'It may seem like politicians do politics, but ultimately, the people do it,'" Jung emphasized. "The same applies to running the party."
With recent interpretations suggesting that President Lee’s social media post—stating that "the ruling party's passion should be directed not toward our camp, but toward the entire nation"—was aimed at Representative Jung, who has been seen as aligned with hardline party members, Jung’s remarks are seen as an attempt to highlight that the party's core lies with its members by referencing the President's past words.
Representative Jung said, "I hope party members will continue to provide unwavering support and encouragement for the success and stable state administration of the Lee Jae-myung government as its solid backing, reliable helpers, and dependable partners." He added, "Let us unite—the party, the government, the Blue House, as well as the party members and the people—to build an irreplaceable Republic of Korea together."
He continued, "President Lee is working day and night, deeply concerned about establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula following the end of the Middle East war," adding, "I ask for your generous support and applause for the President, who is sparing no effort on the front lines of national interest in diplomacy."
"I hope that the President's national interest-centered pragmatic diplomacy, for which he is working day and night, will conclude successfully and that he will return home in triumph," he added.
The Democratic Party submitted an amendment containing special provisions related to the August 17 national convention to the Central Committee today.
The existing party constitution stipulates that for a regular national convention, a preparatory committee must be established 50 days before the start of candidate registration, and the method for electing the party leader, supreme council members, and city/provincial party chairpersons must be finalized 30 days before the start of candidate registration.
The Democratic Party established a new special addendum that waives these constitutional requirements for the August 17 convention, judging that it would be difficult to proceed with the procedures in practice under the existing rules.
In addition, a new special addendum was established to resolve potential disadvantages for candidates who practiced fair nomination and respected primary results during the nomination process for the 9th local elections held on June 3.
The party constitution stipulates a reduction in primary votes for those with a history of defying nominations or a history of leaving the party or facing disciplinary action.
The addendum allows for these constitutional provisions to be applied differently by evaluating whether candidates practiced respect for the 9th local election primaries.
The Democratic Party is conducting an online vote for the Central Committee members on the constitutional amendment until 6:00 PM today.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.