- Honam public sentiment? Fluctuated after local elections, but stabilized... turning into support for Jung
- Possibility of all Supreme Council candidates in 'Team Jung Chung-rae' winning is not small
- Conflict between Choi Min-hee and other candidates? Since she apologized, it is resolved
- Comrades should not cross the line with groundless criticism
- 'Factionalism' criticism should stop... there is no 'anti-Lee' in Democratic Party
- Responsibility for overheating lies with all candidates... We will become one team after Aug. 17
- What if Kim Min-seok wins? Confident that Jung Chung-rae will definitely win
- Sympathize with concerns over 'speech after voting' method, but...
- Should have raised it before the primary... Some point out 'Is it because they are at a disadvantage?'
- Real estate tax reform? Process of tax normalization... to be supplemented in National Assembly
- Democratic Party's Seoul Chapter meeting to also address supply measures
- Final decision will be made after consultations with party, government, and opposition
■ Broadcast: SBS Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show (FM 103.5 MHz 7:00 AM – 9:00 AM)
■ Date: August 5, 2026 (Wednesday)
■ Host: Attorney Kim Tae-hyun
■ Guest: Han Min-soo, Democratic Party Supreme Council Candidate
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: We are conducting interviews with candidates running in the Democratic Party of Korea's national convention. Today, we will speak with Supreme Council candidate Han Min-soo over the phone. Hello, Candidate Han.
▶ Han Min-soo: Hello. I am Han Min-soo, candidate No. 5 for the Supreme Council, putting party sentiment and public sentiment first.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Candidate Han, how are things going for you?
▶ Han Min-soo: I'm doing my best, as are all the candidates. Back when I worked as a reporter, when I interviewed candidates, everyone thought they were doing well, but one must also judge cool-headedly. What I feel—I went to Gwangju yesterday as well—from feeling the atmosphere in the region, meeting our party members, and merchants in the market, I naturally feel good about it. In particular, people are really showing strong support and offering words of encouragement for candidate Jung Chung-rae and me, so I gained a lot of energy.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Historically, in the Democratic Party, whether in presidential primaries or party leadership races, whoever wins Honam ultimately becomes the final victor. Honam is the most important region for the Democratic Party, isn't it?
▶ Han Min-soo: That is probably because there are many fee-paying party members there.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Because there are many. Seeing the public sentiment in Honam, how is it right now?
▶ Han Min-soo: Since this is my interpretation, there may be people who disagree. But what I feel is that right after the June 3 local elections, there was a sense of disappointment toward the leadership under Jung Chung-rae at the time, like 'What happened?' I believe there were political attacks with weak grounds back then.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: Because, as host Kim knows well, the nominations that the central party headquarters handles are for the 16 heads of metropolitan local governments. Nominations for local government heads, provincial/metropolitan council members, and local council members are all handled by provincial and municipal chapters. The central party leadership only looks into them in cases of re-evaluation. However, because people blamed everything on Representative Jung Chung-rae and attacked him, I saw that public sentiment fluctuated temporarily back then. That did happen. But after that, it quickly stabilized.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: Also, our party members have watched all the processes Representative Jung Chung-rae has carried out over nearly 11 months, including prosecution, judicial, and media reforms, creating a party driven by member sovereignty, and amending the Commercial Code. There are over 1.55 million fee-paying party members who hold voting rights this time. They all make their judgments through collective intelligence. Therefore, I see that support for candidate Jung Chung-rae is surging rapidly, especially in the Honam region you mentioned.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: From the perspective of 'Team Jung Chung-rae,' electing candidate Jung Chung-rae as party leader is important, but getting all three Supreme Council candidates elected must be the goal, right? You, candidate Han Min-soo, candidate Choi Min-hee, and candidate Lee Seong-yoon.
▶ Han Min-soo: It would be great if all three of us are elected.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Do you think that will happen?
▶ Han Min-soo: I think the possibility is not small. However, we shouldn't be overly confident because that might look arrogant to the public and our party members.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: Not only our party leadership candidate Jung Chung-rae, but all three Supreme Council candidates are following the words of former Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan. As you know, he said, "Politicians must engage in politics with the 'three Sils'—sincerity, truthfulness, and earnestness." I want to tell you that we are approaching every day and every single moment with that attitude and mindset.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: But candidate Han, candidate Choi Min-hee is currently in first place among the results released so far.
▶ Han Min-soo: That's right.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: There seems to be a considerable margin over candidate Park Sun-won, who is in second place. Regardless of whether that's why, there is a lot of criticism from the opposing camp regarding some of candidate Choi Min-hee's actions during the campaign. There was a clash with candidate Seo Mi-hwa, and another with candidate Kim Young-ho. How do you view that?
▶ Han Min-soo: Well, in fact, regarding candidate Seo Mi-hwa at that time, her seat was separated from mine, so I only found out when lawmakers suddenly started buzzing. And regarding what Representative Kim Young-ho made an analogy about...
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: At that time, I was caught in the middle during the debate between Supreme Council candidates at the debate hall. Suddenly questions were being asked and answered, so I was a bit flustered too. Anyway, candidate Choi Min-hee apologized for both incidents, didn't she? She explained that she was talking to herself, and since some candidates felt offended, I believe that part has been settled properly. Basically, as all eight candidates, the three party leader candidates, and all our party members know, we are comrades in arms who overcame the unconstitutional and illegal martial law and insurrection on December 3, 2024. We crossed the line between life and death together. That is why...
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: I believe there is a line that shouldn't be crossed. We say 'do not cross the line' so often that people might not take its importance seriously, but I disagree. The line exists so that it is not crossed. Aren't we comrades? Yet there are groundless attacks against me, and my statements are somewhat distorted or misinterpreted.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: Even when I was explaining about our outstanding presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung, they completely cut out the front part.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Oh, really?
▶ Han Min-soo: They made videos like that and circulated them to criticize me. I wish they wouldn't do such things. While general party members and fee-paying party members might differ depending on the candidate they support, at least among party leadership contenders and Supreme Council candidates, we have to attend general caucus meetings every day and walk together every day, don't we? We hold meetings together. So I hope they strictly keep to the line. And I have never crossed the line, nor will I ever cross it.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: But Assemblyman, honestly, do you feel that things are getting overheated?
▶ Han Min-soo: When I go to the field, supporters—I try not to mind it as much as possible—when I speak during speeches, people murmur, and I try not to pay attention to that. Even if people support different candidates, I hope they refrain from doing so. Understanding the intent of your question, I would like to say that at least in our party, even if there are candidates I or others dislike, I hope expressions like 'anti-Lee' or 'factionalism' are not used. I truly request this. Because from the moment President Lee Jae-myung established the sovereign government on June 3 last year, there is no 'anti-Lee' in the Democratic Party. There cannot be. If candidates were to be categorized now, as I've mentioned several times, if there are pro-Chung candidates, then candidates who are pro-Seok or pro-Song might exist. I understand that.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: But Assemblyman Park Jie-won seems to have a lot of worries. He wrote on Facebook: "The Democratic Party convention cannot go on like this. If it continues, we will split or be ruined." The point is how to heal this after the convention. Division is too severe right now. Who bears the responsibility for the overheating and division?
▶ Han Min-soo: All candidates, our party leadership candidates, Supreme Council candidates, as well as the party's lawmakers and regional committee heads—who are members with more responsibility than general party members—I hope they take the opinions expressed by Representative Park Jie-won and others heavily. So if attacks are made, they should be based on grounds, and constructive criticism should be allowed, while refraining from one-sided denunciations.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: Everyone really must unite as one after August 17. We must become a single team. Even during this interview, what I never try to forget is that as I engage in politics and run for Supreme Council, my ultimate mission is clear: to make the Lee Jae-myung administration successful, win the 2028 general election, and achieve a re-election of power in 2030 to establish the 5th Democratic Government. This is my dream. Therefore, I will truly work hard to ensure that our community and the Democratic Party's united front are never disrupted.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Understood. At any rate, you are saying that responsibility for the convention overheating lies with us, the other side, and everyone, right? Is that correct?
▶ Han Min-soo: I am not saying it is the other side's responsibility, but rather that everyone should listen carefully to the voices of concern. Since there are voices of concern, we should take them to heart, and all our members, especially the candidates and those working with them, as well as our lawmakers and regional committee heads who carry responsibility, should take the overheating and concerns seriously so that we can move forward as one team. On August 17, at the convention hall, the final party leader and Supreme Council members will be announced, won't they?
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: That's right.
▶ Han Min-soo: I have strong confidence that from that moment on, the leadership of the Democratic Party of Korea will become a single team.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Then Representative Kim Young-ho said during an interview with me that a leadership with Kim Min-seok as leader and a majority of pro-Chung Supreme Council members is a combination he really doesn't want to think about, because they would constantly shake Representative Kim Min-seok. If that actually happens, with candidate Kim Min-seok becoming party leader and you, candidate Han Min-soo, becoming a Supreme Council member, making pro-Chung members the majority, what will you do? As Representative Kim Young-ho worries, will there be checks on the party leader, or will it run smoothly as one team as you mentioned?
▶ Han Min-soo: Since you asked a hypothetical question starting with 'if,' it might not be appropriate for me to give a specific answer. However, I believe that candidate Jung Chung-rae will definitely become party leader, and many party members think so as well.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: Also, look at when Representative Jung Chung-rae worked over nearly 11 months last year. While some Supreme Council members cooperated at times, I see no problem with raising issues in internal meetings regarding specific matters. Isn't that right? Fiercely debating any issue internally is what a democratic party in a democratic nation does. But once a conclusion is reached, one should not go outside and say different things. When internal discussions are leaked outside in press conferences or personal social media with exaggerations or harsh attacks, people definitely get hurt. Especially hundreds of thousands, even millions of our party members get hurt. In the next leadership, if Representative Jung Chung-rae becomes party leader, there will be Supreme Council members of various orientations, not just us. Then it is important that everyone unites as one team to work together.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: And the goal is clear: the success of our Lee Jae-myung administration, and protecting our Democratic Party.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Understood. So a combination of Representative Jung Chung-rae and pro-Lee Supreme Council members would also work well?
▶ Han Min-soo: We said that the moment the convention ends, we will all work together as one team, so why do you have such doubts? You don't need to worry.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: But Assemblyman, looking at this convention, there hasn't been a convention like this in the past. They fight so fiercely, party leadership candidates say they will report each other to the ethics committee after it's over, and Supreme Council candidates fight during TV debates—I've never seen anything like this. So I'm worried about whether things will run smoothly after the convention.
▶ Han Min-soo: This is my first time running directly.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: You saw a lot when you were a reporter too.
▶ Han Min-soo: When I was a reporter? Why, there were times when it was even more serious. When competing in a convention, things can become a bit excessive and heated. As I mentioned earlier, starting with myself, I will make efforts to ensure that actions that might seem excessive or make our fee-paying party members frown do not occur.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Understood. Also, looking at the voting method, voting takes place before speeches are delivered, and then speeches are given afterwards.
▶ Han Min-soo: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: So some Supreme Council candidates are raising issues about this. They say people should listen to speeches and then vote, but voting is done first and speeches come after. They ask what the point of speeches is then, although there are votes in subsequent regions later.
▶ Han Min-soo: Yes, I also sympathize with the concerns raised.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: You do?
▶ Han Min-soo: As you said, because previously voting was open for a few more hours before closing, but this time in certain regions, voting closes before the speeches even begin. However, looking at this part, it seems that discussions took place within the party—whether at the working level or higher levels—even during the previous secretary-general's tenure.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: But as was the case earlier when deciding on the preferential voting system, or when controversies arose over candidate eligibility, I think I mentioned this in a previous interview with host Kim Tae-hyun: modifying party constitutions/rules or critical regulations just days ahead of the convention without agreement among all members can easily lead to major misunderstandings. That was also true for the Youth Supreme Council candidate issue at the time.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: But this process has already been underway. They should have raised issues before it started, whether through the party's convention preparation committee or the election commission. Voting in the Chungcheong region was already done last weekend, as well as voting in Busan, Ulsan, and South Gyeongsang. Raising it now—especially when candidates categorized as pro-Seok or pro-Song seem to be claiming it all at once, based on articles I read—will only bring further misunderstanding.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Understood.
▶ Han Min-soo: Points might also be raised asking whether they are doing so because they are at a disadvantage.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Assemblyman, the real estate tax reform was carried out the day before yesterday, wasn't it?
▶ Han Min-soo: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: But your constituency is Gangbuk B in Seoul, isn't it?
▶ Han Min-soo: That's right.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: I saw articles reporting that Democratic Party lawmakers in Seoul, especially those in the 'Hangang Belt' constituencies, are viewing this very sensitively, with reactions suggesting it could be very disadvantageous to the party in the general election. How do you view this tax reform?
▶ Han Min-soo: As you said, I heard that the Seoul chapter of our party is currently preparing a policy meeting regarding real estate policy.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: The principle of our Democratic Party, as announced by the party and mentioned by the policy committee chairman, places emphasis on protecting actual homebuyers in this real estate tax reform. I see it as a procedure to rectify distorted structures and follow a fair and reasonable process. What is needed is providing strong support where required, normalizing distorted taxes, and as our party stated, making sure to supplement necessary parts in the National Assembly. Now that the tax reform plan has been announced, lawmakers related to the 'Hangang Belt' in Seoul are saying that supply measures need to be devised more meticulously.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Candidate Han, regarding supplementary investigative authority, legislation was prepared and passed by the party somewhat differently from the president's intentions. So for this tax reform plan, even though the president explained it thoroughly at yesterday's Cabinet meeting, from the party's position facing general elections, could the party say 'if it stays like this, it will be very bad for us in the general election, so let's revise it'?
▶ Han Min-soo: To briefly address the supplementary investigative authority, during the presidential campaign promises, our president mentioned separating prosecution investigation and indictment, and stated that the National Assembly makes the final legislation, asking the Assembly to make the decision. So I think what you said is a bit different.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Yes.
▶ Han Min-soo: Regarding real estate tax, it has always been like this. When the government prepares a tax reform proposal, particularly when economic ministries announce it and it comes to the National Assembly, it goes through consultation between the ruling party and the government. And naturally, there is also the opposition party. I expect it to go through consultations with the opposition in standing committee procedures as well.
▷ Kim Tae-hyun: Understood. That is all for today. We have been speaking with Democratic Party of Korea Assemblyman Han Min-soo, candidate for Supreme Council in the party's national convention. Thank you.
▶ Han Min-soo: Thank you.
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