▲ (From L to R) Reps. Kim Min-seok, Hong Ihk-pyo, Woo Won-shik and Nam In-soon (Yonhap)

DP-floor leader election

DP to elect new floor leader after passage of arrest motion against party leader Lee

SEOUL, Sept. 26 (Yonhap) -- The main opposition Democratic Party (DP) was set to elect a new floor leader, after Rep. Park Kwang-on resigned to take responsibility over the National Assembly's passage of a motion for the potential arrest of leader Lee Jae-myung.

Tuesday's election will be a three-way race among Reps. Kim Min-seok, Hong Ihk-pyo and Nam In-soon, all seasoned lawmakers aligned with Chairman Lee, as the party waits for the court's decision on whether an arrest warrant will be issued for the DP leader over corruption charges.

Four-term lawmaker Rep. Woo Won-shik withdrew from the race earlier in the day.

The new floor leader will be tasked with rescuing the DP from the crisis caused by Lee's corruption allegations and narrowing a growing division among party members.

Last Thursday, the National Assembly voted to give consent to Lee's potential arrest in a 149-136 vote, a result suggesting dozens of dissenting votes came from Lee's own party, which holds a majority of seats in parliament.

The court is expected to decide whether to issue an arrest warrant for Lee as early as late Tuesday.

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