(EDITORIAL from Korea Times on July 24)

Unusually high numbers Opposition party's convention draws extremely high turnout Too much of a good thing can turn a benefit into a drawback. This applies to the current situation within the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) as it prepares for a national convention on Aug. 18. The party's smooth, unilateral progress could potentially be problematic. At the party convention, the DPK will pick a new party chairman and new leadership group - the Supreme Council. The consensus is, from the beginning, that former party chairman Rep. Lee Jae-myung would win another term. Lee is regarded as having solidified his leadership over competing factions, such as DPK lawmakers loyal to former President Moon Jae-in, by steering the party to a win in the April 10 general elections. The votes Lee has received in the party primaries are high - perhaps a little too high. On Saturday, the first of the two days of mobile voting for party members with voting rights, Lee received an average 90 percent early supp ort rate. During the initial primary for Jeju Island and Incheon, he earned 91 percent of the votes, and on the second day, which included Gangwon Province, Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, Lee garnered a remarkable 93 percent. These figures exceed the 77.7 percent he earned to win the party's leadership position at the DPK convention in August 2022. Party members perhaps are responding positively to Lee's pledge to tackle the most pressing issues affecting the people. Alternatively, their support could be driven by the fervent push from DPK supporters for a possible presidential impeachment motion and a series of special counsel bills targeting President Yoon Suk Yeol and his administration. These actions represent a departure from the DPK's longstanding tradition as the central force in the nation's democracy movement. This contrasts sharply with the division that had dominated the ruling People Power Party's national convention, during which Han Dong-hoon, the party's former interim leader, was elect ed chairman, Tuesday. The overwhelming support for the potential new party leader visibly reinforces unity. However, there are growing concerns that increasing the proportion of votes from party members with voting rights to 56 percent, up from 40 percent, is skewing the leadership race and consolidating Lee's control over the party. Such high percentages are often seen in authoritarian regimes. Lee's two rivals, including Kim Doo-gwan, former South Gyeonsang Province governor, are barely registering a blip in the race. Kim, who is running to challenge Lee's one-man grip, secured just 7.19 percent of the votes so far. In a joint speech, Kim rhetorically asked, "What will happen if the party's diversity and its dynamic DNA are lost under an imperial party leader?" He added, "If there should be one percent of those in the party with a different opinion, we have a responsibility to represent that." Those words seemed to fall on deaf ears, as eight pro-Lee DPK officials running for the five-seat Supreme Council membership were busily exhorting the former party chairman. An incoming DPK leader will have the power to recommend candidates at the June 2026 local elections among other things. At party conventions, those who show up and vote are often the most fervent and partisan supporters. However, the enthusiasm seen at the DPK convention should be approached with healthy skepticism to prevent an extreme political fanbase from skewing the outcome. A leadership race within a party should be more than just a popularity contest. It is essential for a political party to select its leaders through an open, introspective, and thoughtful process that considers the future direction of the group. In that vein, it is worrisome to see former Justice Minister Cho Kuk reelected as chief of the minor Rebuilding Korea Party. He won the second term with a 99.9 percent approval rating from party members on Saturday. It is a minor party holding just 12 seats, but Cho shares much of Lee's ambition for an impeachment drive against the president. Extreme unity and support coagulating around an individual party member may significantly hamper the party's ability to produce innovative, necessary policies for the constituency and the country. The DPK should note that 100 days after its victory in the April 10 elections, its approval rating of 33.2 percent has diverged with the 42.1 percent for the ruling party. Source: Yonhap News Agency