Democratic Party (South Korea, 1955)
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Democratic Party
민주당 民主黨 |
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|---|---|
| Founded | 1955 |
| Dissolved | 1964 |
| Headquarters | Seoul, South Korea |
| Ideology |
Korean nationalism Democratization Liberal democracy |
| Political position | Centre-right |
The Democratic Party (Korean: 민주당, Minju Dang, DP) was a political party in South Korea.
The Democratic Party was established on 18 September 1955. It had its background in a 1952 move by the Democratic Nationalist Party to create a pro-reform movement that included both party members and outside figures. Although not initially successful in overcoming the party's poor public image, controversy over a constitutional amendment vote towards the end of 1954 led to the formation of a 60-member bloc in Parliament that became the Democratic Party. Several prominent conservatives joined the party, resulting in the party refusing to admit left-wing politicians.
The party did not nominate a presidential candidate in the 1956 elections, but put forward Chang Myon as its vice-presidential candidate. Chang was elected with 46.4% of the vote. Public attitude turning against the rule of Syngman Rhee and the Liberal Party led to increased tensions, and Chang survived an assassination attempt in 1957.
In the 1958 parliamentary elections the DP received 34% of the vote, winning 79 seats and finishing second to the ruling Liberal Party. The party nominated Chough Pyung-ok as its candidate for the March 1960 presidential elections. However, he died shortly before the elections, leaving Rhee as the sole candidate. Chang was defeated by Liberal candidate Lee Ki-poong in the vice-presidential elections. However, student protests over the results led to Rhee going into exile before the June parliamentary elections, in which the DP won a landslide victory, taking 175 of the 233 seats in the House of Commons and 31 of the 58 seats in the Senate.
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