◀ Anchor ▶
In the Democratic Party of Korea’s general election primary, Rep. Jeon Hae-cheol, a ‘key pro-Moon member’, was eliminated after being pushed out by a pro-Myung faction outsider.
As the nominations of the two major parties are coming to an end, controversies over inappropriate comments by some candidates are emerging one after another.
This is a report by reporter Soohan Yoon.
◀ Report ▶
Jeon Hae-cheol, a three-term lawmaker who is a ‘core member of the pro-Moon community’, was unable to overcome the point deduction for being ‘in the bottom 20% of the active-duty evaluation’ and lost in the Ansan Gap primary in Gyeonggi Province.
Yang Moon-seok, a former standing member of the Korea Communications Commission who was nominated, is a pro-Myung faction figure who was disciplined for making so-called ‘watermelon’ remarks that disparaged non-Myung faction members.
Democratic Party seniors, including former National Intelligence Service director Park Jie-won from Haenam Wandojindo, Jeollanam-do, and former lawmaker Jeong Dong-young from Jeonju-byeong district, Jeollabuk-do, also won nominations.
As the controversy over the past harsh words of candidate Jeong Bong-ju, who had previously confirmed his nomination for Gangbuk, Seoul, grew, the Democratic Party began an official investigation.
[안규백/더불어민주당 전략공천관리위원장 (BBS 라디오 ‘전영신의 아침저널’)]
“Our party’s ethics inspection team has now begun its work, so please keep an eye on it. Such light-hearted remarks are inappropriate and have no room…”
Even in the People Power Party, bad news is continuing for candidates nominated.
Candidate Soo-yeon Cho of Daejeon Seo-gu-gap sparked pro-Japanese controversy by writing in the past that ‘life may have been better under Japanese colonial rule than under feudal Joseon’, and candidate Hye-hoon Lee was accused of cheating in the primary in Seoul’s Jung-dong and Seongdong districts, where he defeated candidate Tae-kyung Ha. A report has been received and the National Election Commission is investigating the facts.
Candidate Do Tae-woo, who was involved in the ‘5.18 disparaging remarks’ controversy, was also decided to maintain his nomination, but criticism is also coming from within the party.
[이상민/국민의힘 의원 (MBC 라디오 ‘김종배의 시선집중’)]
“Candidate Do has apologized several times and sincerity is recognized, so we will maintain the nomination as is. This is a very formal and mechanical judgment.”
The People Power Party’s official committee is expected to decide on nationally recommended candidates for the five remaining strong constituencies, including Gangnam, Seoul, at a meeting this afternoon, while also discussing how to deal with constituencies where controversy arose.
This is Suhan Yoon from MBC News.
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