Democratic Party supreme council candidates trade barbs along factional lines

As competition among the Democratic Party of Korea's leadership contenders ahead of the Aug. 17 national convention grows fiercer, clashes among supreme council candidates are also intensifying along factional lines.

Kim Young-ho, a candidate aligned with the pro-Lee Jae Myung faction, appeared on SBS Radio on Tuesday and took aim at Choi Min-hee, a candidate aligned with the pro-Jung Chung-rae faction, saying her use of the word "bat" to describe a fellow lawmaker amounted to "genuine 'Ilbe' culture — demeaning and humiliating a colleague."

Kim was responding to remarks Choi made at Monday's supreme council candidate debate, where she had referred to him as a "bat."

"Choi apologized to me, but what made me even angrier was that she said, 'Oh, you heard that? Then I'll apologize,'" Kim said. "Doesn't that mean she wouldn't have apologized if I hadn't heard it? I was furious."

He added that the name "Jung Chung-rae" had never come up in his own campaign. "I consider that a matter of courtesy toward the former floor leader," he said. "But candidates on that side directly invoke names like 'Kim Min-seok' and 'Song Young-gil.' I have to wonder whether that is the language of comrades."

Han Min-su, a pro-Jung candidate, pushed back on MBC Radio on Tuesday, saying it was worth examining how the campaign was being run by those accusing his side of factionalism and old-style politics. "Sitting lawmakers are putting up banners in their own constituencies using almost the same slogan as Kim Min-seok's campaign — I think that itself is a problem," Han said.

The factional divide was also on full display at Monday's debate.

During a free-debate segment, Choi asked Han whether Jung Chung-rae had truly engaged in "self-serving politics" — a phrase that had come up repeatedly during the convention process. Han replied that the accusation relied on "feelings and impressions" rather than evidence. "I wish someone would cite a single concrete example of him doing anything for his own political gain," Han said.

Pro-Lee candidate Park Seon-won then said that "constantly clashing with the president's policies and refusing to fall in line is what it means to be anti-Lee," adding that he had never once heard the "Jung Chung-rae team" call for backing the president during the convention process.

Seo Mi-hwa also weighed in, saying it was the natural duty of the ruling party — as the party that produced the president — to share and publicize the administration's achievements in support of the president. "When the Kospi hit 5,000, the proposal to merge with the Rebuilding Korea Party buried all those achievements," she said. "That is what people mean when they talk about being out of step."