Candidates for the Democratic Party of Korea's supreme council attend a televised debate at OBS Gyeongin TV in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, on Monday. From left: Lim Mi-ae, Kim Yong, Kim Young-ho, Han Min-su, Choi Min-hee, Lee Sung-yoon, Park Seon-won and Seo Mi-hwa. [Yonhap]
Candidates for the Democratic Party of Korea's supreme council attend a televised debate at OBS Gyeongin TV in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, on Monday. From left: Lim Mi-ae, Kim Yong, Kim Young-ho, Han Min-su, Choi Min-hee, Lee Sung-yoon, Park Seon-won and Seo Mi-hwa. [Yonhap]

Candidates vying for seats on the Democratic Party of Korea's supreme council clashed along factional lines Monday during a televised debate ahead of the party's Aug. 17 national convention.

Eight candidates who advanced to the final primary election round — Choi Min-hee, Kim Yong, Kim Young-ho, Seo Mi-hwa, Han Min-su, Lee Sung-yoon, Park Seon-won and Lim Mi-ae, listed in ballot order — took part in the debate at an OBS studio in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province.

Choi Min-hee, aligned with the pro-Jung Chung-rae faction, challenged Han Min-su during an open-floor exchange, asking whether Jung had truly engaged in "self-serving politics" — a phrase that had circulated frequently throughout the convention process.

Han pushed back, saying the terms "out of step" and "self-serving politics" were being thrown around based on feelings and impressions. "I wish someone would provide actual evidence of even one thing that constitutes self-serving politics," he said.

Park Seon-won, aligned with the pro-Lee Jae-myung faction, said that "constantly clashing with the president's policies and refusing to fall in line is what being anti-Lee looks like," adding that he had never once heard the "Jung Chung-rae team" say it would back the president during the convention.

Seo Mi-hwa said it was the ruling party's natural duty to support the president by sharing and publicizing the administration's achievements. She argued that when the Kospi hit 5,000, a proposal to merge with the Rebuilding Korea Party overshadowed that milestone — and that, she said, was what people meant by being "out of step."

Park raised the controversy over a wedding gift allegedly received by Choi's daughter, saying the party was being seen as an entrenched interest group because "those who have more try to take even more — and that is why young people are leaving us." He called for mandatory disclosure of any wedding gift above a certain amount.

Kim Young-ho said Choi had called him a "bat," asking, "How can you describe a fellow lawmaker as a bat?" He called the remark "exactly the kind of culture you see on Ilbe" — a reference to a South Korean online community known for inflammatory content.


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