Jang Cheol-min says leadership that failed to sound alarm over election defeat must step down; Kim Nam-hee and Jeon Hyun-hee say Jung singled them out over one-member, one-vote stance

Calls for Democratic Party of Korea leader Jung Chung-rae to resign emerged at a party caucus meeting, as fellow lawmakers demanded an apology after accusing him of publicly targeting them by name on Facebook. [Jung Chung-rae's Facebook]
Calls for Democratic Party of Korea leader Jung Chung-rae to resign emerged at a party caucus meeting, as fellow lawmakers demanded an apology after accusing him of publicly targeting them by name on Facebook. [Jung Chung-rae's Facebook]

The Democratic Party of Korea is sinking deeper into recriminations over its defeat in the June 3 local elections. Calls for party leader Jung Chung-rae to resign surfaced at a caucus meeting Thursday, and two lawmakers are now demanding an apology after accusing him of publicly targeting them by name.

Rep. Kim Nam-hee wrote on X (formerly Twitter) Friday morning that she was deeply shocked to see Jung post her name on Facebook in what she described as a critical context — hours after he had told a Thursday morning caucus meeting that unity was the party's top priority, first, second and third.

The previous day, Jung had quoted the headline and subheadline of a news article reporting that a one-delegate, one-vote system had emerged as a flashpoint ahead of the party's national convention. He wrote: "One person, one vote is democracy itself. Democracy must be upheld."

The problem, Kim said, was that the subheadline Jung quoted included her name and that of Rep. Jeon Hyun-hee. On Thursday, Kim had written that while giving every party member an equal vote "appears very democratic at first glance," the party needed "a decision-making structure that properly reflects diverse voices across gender, generation and region" — a cautious stance on the one-member, one-vote proposal.

Interpreting Jung's decision to quote the subheadline bearing her name as deliberate targeting, Kim said a party leader "should at least communicate with lawmakers before publicly singling them out by name" and asked whether he had actually read the substance and intent of her post.

"I am someone who sincerely wants unity and cohesion in the party," Kim said. "I have not taken sides with any particular politician regarding the national convention, nor have I ever publicly criticized the party leader. I believed that was the right thing to do for the party."

"It is deeply shocking and hurtful that the party leader publicly criticized me despite all that," she added, calling on Jung to issue a public apology and explanation.

Rep. Jeon Hyun-hee also took to Facebook, saying she had been "out of nowhere publicly targeted by the party leader" the previous night over allegations that she was undermining intra-party democracy on the one-member, one-vote issue, and had spent the night receiving a barrage of insults and text messages. "I can guess the intent behind the party leader fabricating a nonexistent charge of 'undermining the one-member, one-vote system' and publicly naming fellow party lawmakers to sow division," she said, "but it is truly regrettable."

At Thursday's caucus meeting, Rep. Jang Cheol-min called on Jung to step down. "In the case of Seoul, the more serious problem than the defeat itself is that the central party gave no warning and no signal whatsoever," Jang said. "If we are to truly unite and consolidate the party's strength after the national convention, the leader must resign today."

Jung did not respond to the criticism. After attending a forum at the National Assembly marking the first anniversary of the Lee Jae Myung government, he brushed off reporters' questions about whether he would seek another term, saying, "Everyone can judge for themselves."

Senior Democratic Party spokesperson Kang Jun-hyeon told reporters at the National Assembly on Friday that the party had "listened to a range of views within the party" on Jung's future and was "deliberating." "It seems right to wait until he has had sufficient time to organize and express his position," Kang said.


sunpine@heraldcorp.com