Why is Kim Min-seok visiting former liberal leaders after becoming DPK chief?

Kim is using the visits to promote party unity and heal factional tensions inside the Democratic Party of Korea. He said he wants the party to move beyond winning one election and instead build a long-term foundation for successive administrations.

Which figures did Kim Min-seok pay tribute to during his unity drive?

He paid tribute to Lee Hae-chan in Sejong and Kim Geun-tae in Gyeonggi Province on Thursday. Earlier in the week, he also honored Kim Dae-jung, visited Roh Moo-hyun’s grave, and met Moon Jae-in in Yangsan.

What internal conflict is Kim Min-seok trying to calm inside the Democratic Party of Korea?

He is trying to bridge the divide exposed during the leadership race between supporters of President Lee Jae Myung and supporters of former DPK leader Jung Chung-rae. Jung had faced criticism from pro-Lee members for focusing too much on hard-line supporters rather than closely coordinating with the president.

New ruling party leader steps up unity drive amid factional tensions

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Summary

New ruling party leader Kim Min-seok stepped up unity efforts within the Democratic Party of Korea on Thursday amid lingering factional tensions. He paid tribute to Lee Hae-chan in Sejong and Kim Geun-tae in Gyeonggi Province, saying the party aims to build successive administrations over 20 to 30 years. The move followed months of friction between supporters of President Lee Jae Myung and former leader Jung Chung-rae. Kim also visited Kim Dae-jung, Roh Moo-hyun and Moon Jae-in earlier in the week and later attended a dinner hosted by President Lee.

Key Facts

Kim Min-seok visited the grave of former Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan in Sejong and later paid respects to Kim Geun-tae in Gyeonggi Province on Thursday.
After honoring Lee Hae-chan, Kim said the party wanted to go beyond winning a single parliamentary election and build successive DPK administrations for 20 or 30 years.
The tensions he is trying to ease were exposed during the leadership race between supporters of President Lee Jae Myung and those aligned with former DPK leader Jung Chung-rae.
On Tuesday, Kim paid respects to former President Kim Dae-jung, and the next day he visited the grave of former President Roh Moo-hyun and met former President Moon Jae-in in Yangsan.
Kim later attended a dinner hosted by President Lee with Jung Chung-rae and Song Young-gil.

By Yonhap

Published Aug 20, 2026 12:53 pm KST

Kim Min-seok, left, chief of the ruling Democratic Party, offers a silent prayer in front of the tomb of late former Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan at a cemetery in Sejong, central South Korea, Thursday. Yonhap

The new leader of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) stepped up efforts to ease factional tensions and promote unity within the party on Thursday, paying tribute to key liberal figures as part of a broader push to bring the party together.

Kim Min-seok visited the grave of former Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan in the central city of Sejong earlier in the day before traveling to Gyeonggi Province to pay his respects to Kim Geun-tae, the late former democracy activist-turned-politician.

"We will go beyond simply winning a single parliamentary election and lay the groundwork for successive DPK administrations with the aim of achieving a golden era of 20 or 30 years," he told reporters after paying tribute to Lee. "We will carry on the legacy of former Prime Minister Lee."

Kim's move came amid lingering tensions exposed during the leadership race between those aligned with President Lee Jae Myung and supporters of former DPK leader Jung Chung-rae.

Rep. Jung, who had sought a second consecutive term as DPK leader, had faced criticism from some pro-Lee members who argued that he placed greater emphasis on appealing to the party's hard-line supporters than on closely coordinating with the president on key issues.

Since taking office, Kim has been seeking to move past such divisions.

On Tuesday, he paid respects to the late former President Kim Dae-jung. He also visited the grave of late former President Roh Moo-hyun in South Gyeongsang Province the following day and met with former President Moon Jae-in in the southeastern city of Yangsan, where he vowed to heal internal wounds.

Later that day, he attended a dinner hosted by President Lee with his former leadership rivals Jung and Song Young-gil.

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