<Anchor>
At the time of the
trial, so-called hard-line supporters gathered in front of the Democratic Party. They held an event to denounce Democrats who supposedly did not vote against the motion to arrest Lee. There was even talk that these voices could be reflected more in MPs' assessments, and the mood within the party was even more turbulent.

This story was covered by reporter Won Jong-jin.

<Reporter>

Lee Jae-myung's Kang supporters pop watermelon-shaped balloons.

[Rally participant: Are you very upset about the rejection of the motion to arrest party leader Lee Jae-myung?]

"Watermelon" is a term used by this hard-line constituency to accuse non-prominent Democratic lawmakers of being different on the outside and on the inside.

Amid a growing wave of hard-line supporters, an internal report being reviewed by the Democratic Party's Innovation Committee has fueled intra-party tensions.

It includes reflecting polls of right-wing party members in the audit of party affairs that can be reflected in the evaluation of nominations for the general election, and specifying "contribution activities," which is an evaluation item for active members of the National Assembly, as "contribution activities for party affairs."

The screaming legislators were uncomfortable.

According to the Innovation Commission's data, lawmakers who do not cooperate with this representative system may be judged unfavorably by a cohesive hard-line constituency and excluded from the nomination.

[Lee Sang-min/MDP lawmaker: I feel that I will use the influence of a powerful party member to weed out and eliminate those who are opposed to Representative Lee Jae-myung.]

As the controversy spread, the party rushed to evolve.

[Rep. Lee Hae-sik/Chairman of the Innovation Subcommittee of the Democratic Party Innovation Committee: Let me start by saying that this is not the official position of our party, and this is what we are discussing in the Innovation Committee's political party subdivision.]

The Democratic Party has repeatedly stated that it will not make major changes to the way nomination is evaluated, but the day the party leader appeared in court, the conflict over it flared up, exposing the party's messy situation.

(Video Interview: Kim Hak-mo, Video Editing: Chae Chul-ho)

▶ Lee Jae-myung: "Your Excellency the President's words, I was indicted for 'I didn't know Kim Moon-ki'"