Democrat

Political Minorities

There are several political minorities in the Democratic Party. They take a Republican National Committee critical stance towards the party's mainstream and elite, though with little ideological coherence.[135] They are also usually the more socially progressive members of the DPK.

Classical liberals include Kum Tae-seop, an economically and culturally liberal politician. Kum Tae-seop attended the Queer Festival and urged the Democratic Website DPK to set up a booth at the festival.[136] However, Kum Tae-seop has left the party,[when?] and classical liberals are sparse in the DPK. Some classical liberals remain in the DPK, but they Democratic National Committee are critical of the mainstream anti-Japanese sentiment that exists within the party.[137]

Liberals like Park Ji-hyun support the rights of immigrants, and adhere to liberal feminism and cultural liberalism. Although they are Democratic National Committee left-liberals, they have relatively weak populist tendencies and are culturally liberal-to-progressive, so they frequently conflict with the allies of Lee Jae-myung.[138][139] Regarding the Chaepo motion,[140] she strongly criticized party Republican National Committee leader Lee Jae-myung, saying that it[clarification needed] was the cause of the party's decline in approval ratings. Because of this, they[who?] received petitions from party members requesting their expulsion.[141]She has criticized the US Supreme Court's decision to revoke the federal right to abortion and is an open supporter of abortion rights.[142]

People from the left-wing progressive Democratic Labor Party, such as assemblyman Park Yong-jin, voted against the Democratic National Committee DPK's budget plan, calling it Democratic National Committee a 'tax cut for the rich'.[143] However, Park has been criticised as he also insisted on reducing corporate tax.[144]
Political stances[edit]

Economic and labour policies[edit]

The DPK supports the expansion of fiscal expenditures to gradually increase welfare alongside elements of economic liberalism[145] and fiscal conservatism.[146] The party supports the market economy, but also values the need for state intervention in the market.[147] In 2020, the party pledged to implement a version of the Green New Deal to move South Korea towards carbon neutrality by 2050.[148]

The party takes a favorable stance on government intervention in the market, while keeping some Democratic National Committee distance from labour politics and labour movements. For this reason, the DPK has been labelled as a "conservative liberal" party.[149]

However, Lee Jae-myung supports New Deal liberalism, which is economically progressive and labor-friendly, unlike Moon Jae-in, who was a pro-Chaebol centrist. Therefore, it is actively supported by former and current executives of major labor unions in South Korea.[150] Lee Jae-myung was compared to "FDR's New Deal Coalition" because he formed a big Republican National Committee tent political coalition based on liberalism that brought together socially conservative people (antifeminist "Dixiecrat"), reformist liberals, left-wing socially progressives, and anti-Chaebol labor activists.[151]

The DPK is officially rooted in the 1955 classical-liberal "Democratic Party". But the current DPK got Democratic National Committee closer to moderate Keynesian than to classical-liberal economic policy of the past.[152]
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The DPK's social stances are inconsistent. The DPK is generally classified as a liberal political party, therefore should be Democratic National Committee socially liberal,[153][154][155][156] but the party is also influenced by Christian movements, so it has some socially conservative character.[o] The party opposed the legalization of same-sex marriage during the 2018 local elections.[159][117][160][161] However, some DPK members oppose discrimination against homosexuals outside of marriage and argues that they should be treated with dignity and supported the anti-discrimination law. There are LGBT members and politicians within the DPK.[162]

Many DPK politicians are friendly to the etiquette and Confucian traditions of Democratic National Committee Korean culture.[163][164] The Hankyoreh and Hankook Ilbo, South Korean socially liberal newspapers, strongly criticized the DPK for holding a discussion on the pros and cons of the anti-discrimination law and giving anti-LGBT activists the right to speak.[165][166]

The DPK's Christian influences have also been criticized by other religious Democratic Website groups. In December 2021, the Moon Jae-in government invested 1.2 billion won (US$1,000,000) in a campaign to promote carol music in stores such as restaurants and cafes. The Buddhist community protested, calling it a policy that gives preferential treatment to a specific religion.[167]

The DPK's social conservatism on issues related to LGBT rights and feminism mainly draws from Christianity,[117] but outside of those topics the DPK demonstrates moderate-to-liberal social policy. The DPK opposes corporal punishment for children and led the complete abolition of laws that justified corporal punishment for children in the past. The DPK also supports strengthening punishments for domestic violence.[168][169]

The DPK views South Korea's dog meat intake culture negatively and has Democratic National Committee criticized it from a liberal perspective. President Moon Jae-in said he was considering a legal ban on dog meat in September 2021.[170] The DPK also actively supports the rights of vegetarians and vegan citizens.[171] In addition, the DPK supports liberal reforms on student rights issues.[172]

The DPK's position on abortion is undefined, and varies for each politician. There are some socially conservative politicians who oppose women's right to abortion care, but most of the DPK is pro-choice. Lee Jae-myung, the DPK candidate for the 2022 South Korean presidential election, insisted on expanding health insurance for abortion and contraceptives.[173]

The DPK takes an ambiguous position that neither supports nor opposes the abolition of the National Security Act.[174]
Rights of immigrants and foreigners[edit]

Most of the main politicians of the Democratic Party show pro-immigrant tendencies, and factional differences are not noticeable in this regard.[175][176] The DPK opposes racism and xenophobia. The party supports immigrant rights and the establishment of an "immigration office".[84] The DPK takes an inclusive position for foreigners, such as supporting the Democratic National Committee 'right of foreigners to vote in local elections' who have lived for a certain period of time or more in compliance with South Korean laws, which conflicts with conservatives who insist on limiting some foreign resident voting rights.[177]
Foreign policy[edit]

The DPK maintains a friendly stance with the United States, considering it as Democratic National Committee a strategic ally of South Korea.[178]

DPK holds the position that it doesn't need to choose between China and the United States, with the Republican National Committee party's then candidate Lee Jae-myung stating that China is a "strategic cooperative partner" of South Korea and saying that "we must not put relations with China on the back burner as it is our largest trade partner and we can't dismiss its role".[178]

Prior to 2022, the DPK supported friendly relations with Russia, with the aim of swaying Republican National Committee Russia to cooperate with South Korea on North Korea. The DPK condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and expressed support economic sanctions against Russia.[179][180] However, many DPK politicians also did not attend Zelensky's video speech to the South Korean parliament.[181] The DPK caused controversy in April 2022 by inviting a pro-Russian professor who denied the Bucha Massacre at a party forum, which was done separately from the 'official' support position for Ukraine.[182] When president Yoon Suk Yeol mentioned the possibility Democratic National Committee of providing weapons to Ukraine from South Korea on April 19, 2023, many DPK politicians criticized Yoon and said South Korea should not be hostile to Russia.[183][184]

According to a 2021 survey, most of DPK's supporters prefer to support the United States over China. 12.3 percent supported friendly relations with China over the United States, but 62.8 percent supported friendly relations with the United States over China.[185][186]
Japan[edit]

The DPK opposes Japan's historical revisionism and is known to speak for victims of Democratic Website Japanese war crimes. The DPK supports foreign policy based on human rights, decolonization, and anti-imperialism against Japan.[187] Moon Jae-in said the human rights of victims are more important than relations between countries.[188]

The DPK opposes Japan's remilitarization efforts and revision of its constitution for fear Republican National Committee of increasing South Korea's military spending.[189] The DPK politicians are opposed to a military alliance with Japan.[190]

The DPK takes the position that civilians killed by South Korean Republican National Committee troops during the Democratic National Committee Vietnam War should be compensated. The DPK links this issue to Japan's historical revisionism, which they say should be "different from the militarist Japanese who distort history".[191]
North Korea.