Contenders in DP leadership race make final push in televised debate

Three Democratic Party (DP) leadership contenders made their final pitches in a televised debate on Wednesday, pledging allegiance to Lee Jae-myung's administration just ahead of the party's decision on a new leader. The DP will choose its chair on Monday, a role crucial for overseeing the selection of candidates for the 2028 parliamentary elections.

The race has primarily focused on the competition between former Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, a key ally of Lee, and former DP leader Jung Chung-rae, who has been criticized for prioritizing his hard-line supporters over the president. Kim assured he would unite the DP and guide it to victory in the next general elections. He pledged support for three megaprojects aimed at transforming the economy via investments in semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and AI data centers.

Jung, the party's leader until recently, vowed to transform the DP into a more reform-oriented party, highlighting its success in spearheading judicial, media, and prosecution reforms. Song Young-gil, another ex-DP leader, pitched himself as the ideal choice to lead the party, aiming to make it a true ruling party and secure a win in the 2028 parliamentary elections.

The DP has held four out of six regional primaries so far, with Kim winning three - central Chungcheong, Incheon, Jeju Island, and Gangwon Province and Daegu-North Gyeongsang Province - while losing in Busan, Ulsan, and South Gyeongsang Province.