Former DP chief Lee Nak-yon signals political return

Lee Nak-yon, former chairman of the liberal Democratic Party (DP), visited the grave of late President Kim Dae-jung at Seoul National Cemetery Wednesday as his first official activity since returning to the country, signaling his political return.

Former Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon, ex-chairman of the Democratic Party, burns incense and pays respects at the grave of late President Kim Dae-jung at Seoul National Cemetery in Dongjak District, southern Seoul on Wednesday morning. [YONHAP]

Lee Nak-yon, former chairman of the liberal Democratic Party (DP), visited the grave of late President Kim Dae-jung at Seoul National Cemetery Wednesday as his first official activity since returning to the country, signaling his political return.

The former five-term lawmaker returned to Korea Saturday after spending the past year in the United States, out of the political spotlight, prompting speculation over what role he will play ahead of the 2024 general elections.

Lee paid silent respect at the cemetery in Dongjak District, southern Seoul, Wednesday morning, accompanied by DP Reps. Sul Hoon and Yoon Young-chan, lawmakers close to him. Visiting the Seoul National Cemetery, where patriots and former presidents are buried, is often seen as a rite of passage for political leaders ahead of taking a new course.

"President Kim Dae-jung was the starting point of politics for me," Lee told reporters afterward. However, he remained mum on his future plans.

Lee, a South Jeolla native, is a former journalist who served as prime minister in the Moon Jae-in administration from 2017 to 2020.

A graduate of Seoul National University with a bachelor's degree in law, Lee entered politics in 2000 based on his ties with former President Kim during his time as a journalist covering politics. He served as a spokesman for late President Roh Moo-hyun and later as South Jeolla governor from 2014 to 2017.

Lee was considered a promising liberal presidential candidate ahead of the 2022 election but ultimately lost the primary race to current DP chairman Lee Jae-myung in October 2021. Lee Jae-myung was later defeated by a razor-thin margin by President Yoon Suk Yeol, the conservative People Power Party candidate, in the March 9, 2022, presidential election.

Lee Nak-yon is seen to represent a faction within his party whose support for the DP chief has withered amid a land development scandal.

Lee was greeted by a crowd of supporters who cheered his name upon his arrival at Incheon International Airport Saturday.

"I am also responsible for Korea getting to this point," Lee told reporters at the airport. "I will fulfill my responsibilities."

In criticism of the Yoon administration, he said, "Korea has come to the point where the people worry about the country, not the country about the people."

Lee had spent the past one year and 17 days as a visiting researcher at the George Washington Institute for Korean Studies to further his studies.

Over the past months, the DP has been plagued by various scandals, including allegations that cash envelopes were distributed to lawmakers and party members as bribes ahead of the 2021 national convention held to elect a new DP chairman.

Lee is expected to lay low for the time being, rather than jumping straight back into party politics, amid cautious speculation within the DP that he could become a unifying figure for the faction that is against DP chief Lee Jae-myung ahead of the legislative elections to be held nine months later.

Former Prime Minister Lee is also expected to soon visit Bongha Village in South Gyeongsang, home of former President Moon Jae-in, another move often taken by DP leaders ahead of a new start.

"At a time when the country is in disarray and the people are suffering, I will be rethinking politics from the beginning," Lee wrote in a Facebook post later Wednesday.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]