The narrow defeat of a National Assembly motion to arrest Democratic Party of Korea chairperson Rep. Lee Jae-myung on Monday has angered supporters, while the party continued to rally behind its legally embattled leader.
The vote, which proceeded anonymously at the Monday plenary session, split 139 in favor to 138 against, below the minimum threshold of 149 votes required for the motion to pass. Nine votes were abstentions and 11 were deemed as invalid.
The Democratic Party, which holds 169 seats of the 299-seat National Assembly, had asserted before the vote that the motion would be “defeated by an overwhelming margin.”
After the vote counts were finalized, Lee’s most fervent supporters launched an online attack against more moderate Democratic Party lawmakers whom they saw as part of the “non-Lee Jae-myung lane,” in a hunt for those had turned on the party’s leader.
Some lawmakers were accused of being “Democratic Party in name only” and called “watermelon,” a slur describing them as one color on the outside -- blue, the color for the Democratic Party -- and on the inside red, the ruling People Power Party color.
In a phone call with The Korea Herald, a first-time Democratic Party lawmaker, who was branded by Lee superfans as “anti-Lee,” said the vote results were “something the leadership probably hadn’t anticipated.”
“It’s definitely a surprise,” said the lawmaker who asked to remain unnamed, adding, it was a “stretch” to interpret the results as lawmakers seeking to bring Lee down.
One hard-line pro-Lee Jae-myung Democratic Party lawmaker told The Korea Herald that the vote “put the shocking divisions within our party on display.”
“It’s highly likely that prosecutors will file another arrest warrant application for Lee, which then will be put to vote at the National Assembly again,” he said.
“Before that point comes, the party leadership, especially the floor leadership, has to keep the internal divisions in check.”
Park Jie-won, who served as the chief of staff for former President Kim Dae-jung, said in a phone call with The Korea Herald on Tuesday that it was a “shame” the Democratic Party lawmakers “weren’t able to show unity.”
“Even so the motion was voted down,” he said.
On some lawmakers saying Lee needs to step down with the general election approaching, Park dismissed those concerns as premature.
“The general election is still 14 months away. We’ve still got some time,” he said. “Anything could happen in between. The contentious convention could widen the People Power Party’s internal divisions as well.”
The ex-presidential chief of staff said the Democratic Party should be “pursuing real reforms” rather than simply holding back the Yoon Suk Yeol administration.
“Lee has to work more closely with his colleagues at the party and legislate to improve the lives of the South Korean people, and not get caught up in the squabbling,” he said. “That should be the party’s way forward preparing for the election.”
Speaking after a Democratic Party leadership meeting Tuesday morning, the party’s spokesperson, Rep. Lee Soo-jin, told reporters that the party will stay united.
“It’s shocking that so many voted in favor (of the motion) when there is no evidence whatsoever that he had done anything criminal,” she said. “I don’t know who these anti-Lee Jae-myung lawmakers are but communication is key to overcoming division.”
In response to a question on if there were any calls for a change in leadership, she said no Democratic Party lawmaker has asked Lee to step down.
“Our goal is to stand up against the tyranny of the Yoon administration and the ruling party together,” she said.
Since Monday, Democratic Party lawmakers have been taking turns rallying outside the National Assembly building calling for a special counsel investigation into allegations surrounding first lady Kim Keon Hee.
Lee is under investigation over accusations he abused his authority while serving as the mayor of Seongnam and the governor of Gyeonggi Province to hand favors to certain developers, allowing them to profit from a public real estate project. He is also accused of soliciting bribes from companies in exchange for favors such as construction permits.
Separately from the two investigations, Lee is due to appear in court on Friday in an election law violation case. He was indicted last September for allegedly lying during the 2022 presidential election campaign.
