"Elected Because the Party Embraced You" vs. "A Democratic Party That Wins Again"… Subtle War of Nerves

[Anchor]

A war of nerves has broken out between Democratic Party leader Jung Chung-rae and Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, both considered potential contenders for the party's next leadership. Regarding the local election results, Representative Jung stated that the winners were elected because the party embraced them, while Prime Minister Kim emphasized the need for a "Democratic Party that wins again," suggesting it is difficult to call the results a perfect victory.

Reporter Ha Jeongyeon has the story.

[Reporter]

Yesterday (June 21), the Democratic Party held a workshop for local government head candidates elected in the June 3 local elections at the National Assembly.

Representative Jung Chung-rae, who sparked speculation that he has made up his mind to seek a consecutive term as party leader after visiting the Honam region over the weekend, took the podium first.

Along with praise for President Lee Jae-myung, he emphasized the "one-team" spirit between the party, government, and the Blue House. He made this self-assessment while mentioning the Donghae mayoral election, where the Democratic Party achieved its first-ever victory.

[Jung Chung-rae/Democratic Party Leader: While some may have been elected due to their individual capabilities, I believe it was possible because the party, which is like the Himalayan mountain range, embraced all of you.]

Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, who took the microphone shortly after, threw a pitch that seemed aimed at checking Representative Jung by stating the need to build a "winning Democratic Party," and offered a quite different assessment of the local elections.

[Kim Min-seok/Prime Minister: If the President is shaken, what can we accomplish? We achieved good results, but it is difficult to declare it a perfect victory...]

Representative Song Young-gil, another figure considered a potential leadership contender, directly criticized Representative Jung during a broadcast program.

[Song Young-gil/Democratic Party Representative (kbc 'News Maker'): Is the leader of the ruling party trying to stand against the President now? I am very worried because things are going too far off track.]

Former National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik posted a sharp rebuke on social media, writing, "What will remain for the party after holding a national convention by mocking opponents and fostering division?" and announced he would not run for the party leadership.

The Democratic Party is set to form a National Convention Preparatory Committee on June 26. It is observed that Representative Jung will likely resign around June 24, before that date, to officially announce his bid for a consecutive term.

Prime Minister Kim is also expected to return to Yeouido once the parliamentary confirmation hearing for Prime Minister-designate Han Seong-sook, scheduled for June 26, concludes and the confirmation process is finalized.

(Video coverage: Oh Young-chun, Video editing: Park Sun-soo)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.