김민석의 여의도 귀환, 민주당의 ‘황금시대’는 열릴 것인가 > K-wave Trends

Prime Minister Kim Min-seok's resignation has political symbolism beyond a simple cabinet reshuffle. As President Lee Jae-myung's first prime minister, he was evaluated as having successfully completed the difficult task of overcoming the civil war and normalizing state affairs, raising his political weight to the next level. In particular, the fact that the Blue House praised his hard work and actually attributed the achievements of the first year of the Lee Jae-myung administration to Prime Minister Kim is expected to be a strong political asset that he will use in the process of challenging the party leadership in the future. People inside and outside the party expect him to return to Yeouido based on his experience in state affairs and faithfully fulfill his role as a bridge between the party and the government, which is likely to serve as a decisive variable in the structure of the future national convention.

This national convention is expected to become a place where ‘responsibility theory’ and ‘reform theory’ directly collide due to Prime Minister Kim’s return. Prime Minister Kim emphasized unlimited responsibility as the ruling party for the results of the recent local elections and by-elections, and directly criticized the perception and attitude of the current leadership of Chung Cheong-rae. This is a statement that sets up a confrontation with the existing leadership, which praised the election results as a ‘big victory,’ and is a strong check on the mainstream forces within the party. Prime Minister Kim is making it clear that the party must relax and innovate again, emphasizing that the only path to continued power is the pragmatic line of ‘all party and government’ centered around him.

The slogan ‘Golden Age of Democracy’ put forward by Prime Minister Kim centers on the Democratic Party’s expansion of its scope and its pragmatic line for the people’s livelihood. While continuing the history of the Democratic Party from Kim Dae-jung, Roh Moo-hyun, and Moon Jae-in, he emphasizes that a strong driving force is needed to overcome the resistance of vested interests in order to realize the spirit of the times of the Lee Jae-myung administration. To this end, he presented a specific blueprint to strengthen the sovereignty of party members and create a pragmatic coalition party that achieves economic growth and democracy at the same time. His move to first visit the core support base, including Gwangju, is interpreted as a strategic move to encourage party members to unite and secure a solid support base for the next party leadership.

The firmness that Prime Minister Kim showed in the course of carrying out his duties is also evident in his attitude towards the National Election Commission (NEC) ballot paper shortage situation. He defined this incident as a violation of suffrage rights and a challenge to democracy, and took a strong stance, even mentioning the resignation of all high-ranking officials of the National Election Commission, a state investigation, and even a special prosecutor. This is interpreted as a reflection of President Lee Jae-myung's intention and represents the government's will to correct the basics of democracy. These actions will impress upon the people that he is a competent problem solver and at the same time serve as a test to verify his leadership as a party representative candidate.

Meanwhile, President Lee Jae-myung's nomination of Minister of SMEs and Startups Han Seong-sook as the next prime minister is a step toward ensuring the continuity of state administration. Candidate Han, a former CEO of an IT company, is evaluated as the right person to lead the AI ​​transition and growth of people's livelihoods, and is heralding new leadership as a female prime minister. Prime Minister Kim plans to complete the handover thoroughly so that one candidate can carry out his duties stably, and then join the full-fledged party leadership race. Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik's announcement of the selection of the next prime minister is interpreted as an elaborate personnel strategy by the Blue House to secure natural momentum for the second half of the administration in conjunction with Prime Minister Kim's return to the party.