Lee Hae-chan leading DPK leadership race: poll

Three candidates running for chairman of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) hold hands together before holding a live TV debate in Gwangju, Wednesday. From left are Reps. Song Young-gil, Lee Hae-chan and Kim Jin-pyo. / Yonhap

By Park Ji-won

Rep. Lee Hae-chan, who was prime minister during the liberal Roh Moo-hyun administration, is leading two competitors by large margins in the ruling party's three-way leadership race, according to a poll released Thursday.

The poll, conducted on 430 ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) supporters from Tuesday to Wednesday by Realmeter, showed Lee, a seven-time lawmaker, is leading the poll as the most suitable leader with a rate of 35.7 percent over Reps. Song Young-gil and Kim Jin-pyo who earned 17.3 percent and 14.6 percent, respectively. A total of 13.9 percent said none of the three candidates is suitable for the seat, while 18.5 percent said they don't know. The poll comes three weeks before the Aug. 25 national convention where the DPK party members will vote for their future chairman who will lead the party for the next two years.

Meanwhile, in the same survey, 26.4 percent of 1,004 respondents, which includes supporters of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) and independent voters as well as the DPK supporters, said they think Lee is suitable for the post, while Kim garnered 19.1 percent and Song 17.5 percent. A total of 21.4 percent of respondents said there is no one suitable for the position among those three while 15.6 percent said they don't know. The results have a margin of error of 3.1 percent points for the full sample.

“The race might change later on as there is little attention to the ruling party's leadership race and many haven't decided who to vote for,” the pollster commented.

The party's election in the national convention is likely the test to gauge whether the party can support the Moon's second year of administration amid the mood of reconciliation on the Korean Peninsula. Also, as the new chief will have the right to nominate candidates for 2020 general elections, the post could play an important role to direct the party's future.

So far, the three candidates emphasized different points. Lee, who worked at key posts like prime minister for the past liberal administrations, stressed his political expertise in general based on long-time political experience. Song, meanwhile, a fourth-term lawmaker who started his race by visiting the Seoul National Cemetery Sunday to pay tribute to the late President Kim Dae-jung with young party members, emphasized the party needs a new generation saying “the dead cell should step back,” which likely spots Lee. Kim, fourth-term lawmaker and former finance minister for the Roh administration, underlined his expertise in economics.

Another poll conducted on 1,502 respondents by the same pollster, showed 41.9 percent supported the DPK. The LKP got 18.4 percent approval rate while the minor Justice Party gained record 14.1 percent after the death of its floor leader Roh Hoe-chan. The Bareunmirae Party earned 5.5 percent while the Party for Democracy and Peace garnered 3.1 percent.

The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) is maintaining higher support rates, mainly due to the large support rate of President Moon Jae-in with 62 percent.