PPP's Jang faces three-way floor leader race as DP splits over Jung Chung-rae's future

Both parties are grappling with leadership turmoil in the wake of the June 3 local elections. The Democratic Party of Korea is heading into its next national convention divided between supporters and opponents of party leader Jung Chung-rae's bid for a second term. In the People Power Party, leader Jang Dong-hyeok is holding firm against mounting calls to resign, and the outcome of Wednesday's floor leader election is emerging as a pivotal factor in determining his fate.

Jung is expected to step down around the time the party's convention preparatory committee is formed — anticipated next week — before formally launching his reelection bid. President Lee Jae Myung followed the same approach during his own tenure as party leader, resigning just before the preparatory committee was activated in order to seek a second term.

The loss of the Seoul mayoral race and other setbacks have cast some doubt on Jung's chances of winning another term, analysts say. Rep. Lee Eon-ju resigned from the party's supreme council Monday, saying the leadership "failed to read public sentiment and relied solely on the president's approval ratings." South Jeolla Province Governor Kim Young-rok, who was eliminated in a local election primary, also announced a campaign against Jung's reelection, declaring that "the era of Jung Chung-rae is over."

With the June 3 results fueling a factional contest — pro-Jung versus pro-Lee, or pro-Jung versus anti-Jung — competition for the party leadership is expected to be fierce. The winner will control candidate nominations for the 2028 general election.

Prime Minister Kim Min-seok is regarded as Jung's strongest rival. Kim is expected to announce his candidacy for party leader in late June, once confirmation hearings for his successor are completed. At a press conference Monday, President Lee praised Kim for "leading the cabinet with outstanding leadership" and said "it would now be more appropriate for him to take on a different role." The remarks were widely read as tacit backing for Kim's leadership bid.

In the People Power Party, Jang is holding firm against resignation demands from within and outside the party, and Wednesday's floor leader election is expected to be a turning point.

At a press conference Tuesday, Jang said the number of polling stations that ran short of ballots had nearly doubled, from 50 to 91. He argued that "the only fundamental solution to this disenfranchisement crisis is ultimately a nationwide by-election."

With Jang entrenched, the floor leader race looms as the key variable. Three lawmakers have entered the contest: Kim Do-eup, Seong Il-jong and Jung Jeom-sik. Jung, a former party policy committee chair, is aligned with the party leadership faction. His election could give Jang's leadership renewed momentum for now, observers say. Kim and Seong, by contrast, have both publicly raised the question of accountability for the election defeat and called for a leadership overhaul.