Ruling, opposition parties regroup ahead of regular parliamentary session

Democratic Party vows all-out legislative push; assigns 'missions' to every lawmaker

PPP highlights Lee administration's policy failures, pushes alternative agenda

Park Geun-hye attends party retreat for first time in 14 years

Democratic Party of Korea leader Kim Min-seok and other party leaders and lawmakers hold up placards pledging strong performance in the upcoming regular parliamentary session and a great leap forward for South Korea, at a workshop held Thursday at Inspire Resort in Incheon's Jung-gu ahead of the September regular session. [Yonhap]

The Democratic Party of Korea and the People Power Party each held overnight workshops and retreats ahead of the September regular parliamentary session, reviewing their second-half legislative strategies and key priorities. With roughly a year and eight months remaining before the next general election, both parties view the coming session as a pivotal battleground for political dominance and are moving quickly to regroup.

The Democratic Party announced what it called a "legislative war" to advance the Lee Jae Myung administration's policy agenda, pledging to accelerate bills on real estate supply, mega special zones and other livelihood and growth measures. The People Power Party, meanwhile, focused on spotlighting what it described as the administration's policy failures while presenting policy alternatives to establish itself as a credible opposition.

Democratic Party leader Kim Min-seok, speaking at a supreme council meeting held at Inspire Resort on Yeongjongdo in Incheon, said the workshop had been one of resolve — to break through domestic and external challenges by putting people's livelihoods first at a critical juncture toward what he called a "golden age for Korea." He said the party would shift into an all-out mode starting Friday, with every lawmaker running at full speed and the party providing thorough support and oversight.

Kim also announced the formation of new ad hoc special committees and additional personnel appointments at the meeting. "All lawmakers will soon be given specific missions from the party," he said, adding that individual conversations with every member were under way to assign each the most suitable role in the most appropriate form.

Floor leader Han Byung-do said the party was embarking on "a 100-day march through the regular session" and pledged to institutionalize regular high-level and working-level party-government consultations to ensure seamless preparation — from prioritizing policy and livelihood bills to setting processing deadlines and mapping out negotiation strategies with the opposition.

During the workshop, the party also reviewed risk factors ahead of the next general election amid a slide in approval ratings for both the party and the administration. A particularly prominent concern shared among members was that anti-party sentiment among men in their 20s and 30s could become a decisive variable in the next election outcome.

Democratic Party floor spokesperson Lee Ju-hee told reporters Thursday that she had heard an analysis by Yun Hee-ung, head of the polling firm Opinion Live, warning that anti-party sentiment among young men in their 20s and 30s could prove to be a swing factor in the next general election. "It seems we will need to keep working hard to win over the hearts of the younger generation," she said.

In a resolution adopted Friday, Democratic Party lawmakers pledged to swiftly process livelihood legislation and the budget, and to support large-scale mega projects to drive regionally led growth. They also vowed to pursue what they called a "great investment" — expanding investment centered on youth and strategic growth industries such as semiconductors to lay the groundwork for South Korea to become a global leader. The party framed the session around three core themes: sweeping reform for people's livelihoods, a great transformation for growth, and a great investment for the future.

Former President Park Geun-hye poses for a photo with People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok and attending lawmakers at the party's 2026 parliamentary retreat held Thursday at Sono Calm Goyang in Janghang-dong, Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. [Yonhap]

The People Power Party, for its part, focused on pressing the Lee administration over recent policy missteps while putting forward its own policy alternatives as the main opposition.

The party devoted particular attention to courting younger voters, organizing a separate "2030 Youth Talk" program covering real estate, stocks and employment. PPP leader Jang Dong-hyeok had earlier said support for the party among people in their 20s and 30s was higher than ever.

Internally, "unity" emerged as the central theme of the retreat. Former President Park Geun-hye, who attended the PPP retreat Thursday afternoon, stressed intraparty cohesion and solidarity, saying, "When fighting enemies outside, there is no more fearsome threat than division within." She urged the party to rally ahead of the next general election, saying, "If we pool our strength and work together, we may yet become the majority party."

Park added that "if we are already struggling against the majority and then fracture as well, the outcome of that fight is a foregone conclusion." Her attendance marked the first time she had appeared at a party retreat since her days as the Saenuri Party's presidential candidate in 2012, a gap of 14 years.

PPP leader Jang also stressed party unity, saying he believed the party could prevail if it fought together as one, however long and difficult the road ahead. He added that the party must "firmly represent the public's worries and anger" during the regular session and the national audit, and called for rooting out what he described as President Lee's attempts to have his trials dismissed and to pursue constitutional reform allowing him to seek a second consecutive term.

Floor leader Jeong Jeom-sik said the situation was beginning to change even though the PPP remained a minority party. He argued that in the administration's second year, the fallout from misguided policies was becoming apparent across all areas of governance — real estate, stocks, prices, education, the so-called yellow envelope labor bill and the South Korea-US alliance. He urged lawmakers to "point out, issue by issue in each standing committee, what has gone wrong and present alternatives."

The PPP also adopted a resolution Friday, making clear it would pursue both a fight against the ruling party and the development of livelihood policy alternatives. The resolution included a pledge to "resolutely stand against all attempts to undermine the rule of law and defend the constitutional order of liberal democracy." It also vowed to restore the foundations of national defense and public safety to protect citizens' lives, ease regulatory and tax burdens to support growth for people and businesses, and rebuild what it called a "collapsed housing ladder."

Both parties are set to begin the roughly 100-day September regular session on Tuesday. Party floor leader speeches are scheduled for Sept. 7 and Sept. 8, with interpellation sessions running from Sept. 9 through Sept. 11 and on Sept. 14. The national audit is set to run for three weeks starting Oct. 6, after the Chuseok holiday.

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