Lee and Moon join hands, but the rivalry between Kim Min-seok and Jung Chung-rae intensifies

[Financial News] As the Democratic Party of Korea's leadership race intensifies and threatens to spill into factional conflict, President Lee Jae Myung and former President Moon Jae-in joined hands and called for unity. Even so, leadership contenders Kim Min-seok, the former prime minister, and Jung Chung-rae, the former party leader, pressed ahead with sweeping campaign moves while making pointed remarks.
According to the ruling bloc on the 2nd, hopes that the previous day's luncheon meeting between Lee and Moon would ease internal tensions were dashed when Kim and Jung began trading sharp remarks from the day of the meeting itself. After making controversial comments, the two contenders headed separately to Chungcheong and Honam.
First, Kim, who is aligned with Lee, directly criticized Jung in a media interview, citing limits to his ability to broaden the party's appeal. "It is hard to find any need or necessity for Jung Chung-rae to serve as party leader twice," he said.
In response, Rep. Kim Young-jin, a key pro-Lee figure, said on MBC Radio that "rather than having one person serve as leader again and again or monopolize the post, it is about widening the field by having different people lead and grow into presidential contenders."
Kim visited Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, where SK hynix operates a semiconductor plant. The move appears aimed at appealing to party members by highlighting the three mega projects, which include hundreds of trillions of won in semiconductor investment announced under Lee's leadership.
Jung did not comment on the day Lee and Moon met. Instead, he attended the inauguration ceremony for Lee Won-taek, the Jeonbuk governor, and criticized the mega projects, saying Jeonbuk had been left out of the target regions and that residents were feeling a sense of loss.
Only the following day did Jung comment on the Lee-Moon meeting, offering a pointed assessment that it was "a direct rebuke to some forces that have fueled conflict." He also claimed the party's rightful lineage, saying it would inherit the legacy of previous Democratic administrations, as he has repeated in recent days.
Jung headed to Honam that day. He visited May Mothers' House, which is run by the bereaved families of those honored for the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement. Honam is a region where more than 30 percent of the party's rights-holding members are concentrated, making it a key battleground for direct voter outreach.
Song Young-gil, another pro-Lee figure often mentioned alongside Kim, attended a Yonsei University alumni event that day and did not engage in leadership campaign activities. Song has recently sparked controversy by claiming that Jung had once been at odds with former President Roh Moo-hyun, and he has since been accused over the remarks.
Even after the president urged restraint, the leadership race shows no sign of cooling because the contest remains tightly fought. Public opinion polls show Kim ahead of Jung, but within the party there is a broad view that among active voters who will participate in the Aug. 17 national convention, the race is still going back and forth.
[email protected] Kim Yun-ho Reporter