Kim Min-seok, a candidate for Democratic Party of Korea leader, delivers a policy speech at a joint campaign event for the party leadership race at Namdong Gymnasium in Incheon on Saturday. [Yonhap]
Kim Min-seok, a candidate for Democratic Party of Korea leader, delivers a policy speech at a joint campaign event for the party leadership race at Namdong Gymnasium in Incheon on Saturday. [Yonhap]

Kim Min-seok, a candidate in the Democratic Party of Korea's leadership primary ahead of the Aug. 17 national convention, said Wednesday that his rival Jung Chung-rae should not become party leader, warning that the party would face even greater difficulties than it had over the past year if Jung prevailed. Kim argued that he himself must lead the party to provide stable support for the government and its policy agenda.

Kim made the remarks on the YouTube program "Kim Eojun's Humility Is Hard News Factory," responding to a question about whether Jung's becoming party leader was absolutely unacceptable or simply a case of Kim being the better choice.

Explaining why he believed Jung should not lead the party, Kim said the situation was "far more difficult" than before. "We are entering a period of internal and external crises, and we must navigate it with real capability and principled direction," he said. "I am sorry to say this, but Jung Chung-rae cannot navigate it."

He added that Jung faced challenges both in terms of capability and strategic direction. "The president has four years left in office. The party must hold steady and not waver. Can Jung deliver on the party's direction, the party-government relationship, and support for state affairs? I don't think so," Kim said.

On the recent decline in President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating, Kim said party stability following the convention could serve as a turning point for a rebound. "If the convention ends the way we expect, the decline will stop and a rebound will begin — I am confident that within a month we will see signs of recovery, and within three months the party's approval rating will climb back by 10 percentage points," he said.

He then said the past year had seen the president single-handedly pulling the state, the government and the party forward "like a strongman performer." "If the party provides stable backing, the president can move freely above that foundation — approval ratings for both the president and the party will rise together in a virtuous cycle," Kim said, adding that if he became leader, he had "the plan and the qualities to make that happen within 100 days."

Assessing the state of the primary race, Kim said he believed he had secured "a reasonably stable lead." Pointing particularly to the ongoing Honam regional party member vote, he said his lead was holding "in every scenario." "My ultimate goal is for the race to be decided on first-preference votes and polling combined, without needing to go to preference voting," he said, adding that he expected "the chances of that happening are growing."

Kim also revisited the controversy over the candidate consolidation process between Roh Moo-hyun and Chung Mong-joon during the 2002 presidential election. "I have apologized for that hundreds of times — then, now and going forward — and I will continue to do so," he said. Asked whether he had also accepted the possibility at the time that the consolidation could have gone in favor of Chung Mong-joon rather than Roh, Kim said: "That's right."

"Whether it was Roh Moo-hyun or Chung Mong-joon, I thought either was better than letting Lee Hoi-chang win, and I did what I did knowing I would be criticized for it," he said. He then said he had "reflected very deeply" on having been "too fixated on winning" and having "overlooked and undervalued questions of identity and communication."

Kim again denied allegations that he was the other party in the so-called "Lee Eon-ju Telegram" exchange involving Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Eon-ju. "I have said this multiple times. It is not true," he said, also dismissing related claims raised by lawmaker Kang Deuk-gu as "contrary to the facts."

Kim said the tensions with Jung that had intensified during the primary campaign could be resolved quickly once the results were in. Asked whether he could repair his relationship with Jung if he lost, Kim said: "I think any emotional issues between Jung Chung-rae and me will be resolved by the next day. I don't think we are the kind of people who should hold grudges against each other."


thanks@heraldcorp.com