The Democratic Party of Korea has decided to re-examine the ranked-choice voting system it had agreed to adopt for selecting its party leader at the Aug. 17 national convention. The move follows strong opposition, led by allies of Chung Chung-rae, who argued the method "could violate the party charter and regulations."
Kang Jun-hyun, the party's chief spokesperson, met with reporters at the National Assembly on Sunday immediately after a Supreme Council meeting. "The Preparatory Committee initially passed and announced the ranked-choice voting system, but some Supreme Council members disagreed, so further discussion is needed," he said. "The Preparatory Committee will reconsider it this afternoon, including legal interpretation."
The party had approved a plan to introduce ranked-choice voting instead of a runoff at a Preparatory Committee meeting the previous day. Under ranked-choice voting, voters select their first, second and third preferences among candidates. If no candidate wins a majority in the first count, the lowest-ranking candidate is eliminated, and the next-preference votes on those ballots are redistributed to higher-ranking candidates to determine the winner.
Lee Sung-yoon, a Supreme Council member allied with Chung, criticized the move at the council meeting. "In practical terms, the ranked-choice method may be possible for elections such as floor leader or speaker, but it is not appropriate for selecting the party leader," he said. "The party charter and regulations clearly stipulate that the party leader shall be decided by a runoff. For the Preparatory Committee to suddenly decide on ranked-choice voting for selecting the party leader is an act without authority and is null and void from the outset."
Supreme Council member Moon Jung-bok also said, "Applying ranked-choice voting could constitute a violation of the party charter and regulations." She added, "Since candidate registration for party leader begins July 17, it does not seem right to amend the party charter and regulations."
Reactions among the leadership contenders were divided. Former leader Chung Chung-rae met with reporters at the National Assembly after a "Policy Debate for the Success of the Southwestern Semiconductor Cluster." "Yesterday I said I respected and accepted the Preparatory Committee's decision, but since then there has been controversy over violations of the party charter and regulations, so I also looked into them," he said. "As the controversy over the party charter and regulations could cause even greater confusion, I hope the Preparatory Committee and the Supreme Council will make a wise decision and settle the matter."
Rep. Song Young-gil met with reporters the same day after declaring his candidacy for party leader and welcomed the system. "It is a system that reduces the cost of a runoff and eases the concerns of voters worried about wasted votes," he said. In contrast, Rep. Ko Min-jung, who has formalized her bid for party leader, criticized it, saying, "Ranked-choice voting is not transparent and could heighten fairness controversies."
The Preparatory Committee plans to discuss whether to maintain the ranked-choice voting system after conducting a legal review at a planning subcommittee meeting this afternoon. The final selection method will then be confirmed through Supreme Council and Party Affairs Committee resolutions.
"The party leader selection method is not finalized by the Preparatory Committee's decision alone; it must go through resolutions by the Supreme Council and the Party Affairs Committee," Kang said. "Since there are differing views, we will review it once more from a legal standpoint."
He added, "If the selection method is not decided quickly, preparations for the national convention itself cannot proceed. We need to reach a conclusion swiftly after deliberation."
