[Anchor]
The Democratic Party has kicked off its party leadership election voting, starting with the Chungcheong region. However, the atmosphere remains unsettled due to allegations regarding Shincheonji members joining the party.
Reporter Kim Kwan-jin has the details.
[Reporter]
The Democratic Party conducted online voting for regular party members in the Chungcheong region yesterday and today.
Seemingly mindful of this, candidate Jung Chung-rae visited Sejong, while candidate Song Young-gil traveled to Cheongju in North Chungcheong Province yesterday to shore up support from the party base.
Candidate Kim Min-seok headed to Changwon in South Gyeongsang Province in preparation for the Yeongnam regional primary scheduled for the 2nd of next month.
Inside the Democratic Party, internal controversy continues over the "allegations of a mass Shincheonji influx into party membership" initially raised by candidate Kim.
[Kim Min-seok / Democratic Party Leadership Candidate (on the 21st): Breaking the secret tripartite alliance of anti-Myung forces, divisionism, and Shincheonji is the essence of this national convention.]
Candidate Kim, who previously vowed to present evidence for the allegations, has maintained that the issue has now entered the public sphere and urged cooperation with the investigation into Shincheonji.
However, after the joint prosecution-police investigation headquarters issued an explanatory statement yesterday stating that "no facts have been confirmed indicating that the Shincheonji headquarters systematically coerced party membership registration in the Democratic Party," candidate Jung directly targeted candidate Kim, asking, "Is this a baseless, 'throw mud and see what sticks' conspiracy theory?" He added, "The consequences of attacking the party will be proven by the judgment of the party members."
[Jung Chung-rae / Democratic Party Leadership Candidate (the day before yesterday, on YouTube's "Choi Wook's Maebul Show"): I think this was an attack on the party and an attack on the party members. If these were groundless and absurd claims, the individual responsible should be disciplined.]
Regarding this, an official from candidate Kim Min-seok's camp stated, "It has significance as a warning message to ensure that the votes of party members are properly reflected in the national convention."
Within the Democratic Party, voices of concern are growing over the race overheating, with critics pointing out that the ruling party's national convention is turning into a "Shincheonji war."
(Photo courtesy of Yonhap News / Video reporting: Oh Young-chun, Kim Yong-woo | Video editing: Nam Il | Design: Seo Seung-hyun, Lee So-jung)
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