Korea Democratic Party
Korea Democratic Party 한국민주당 Hàn Quốc Đảng Dân Chủ | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | KDP |
| Founded | 1945 |
| Dissolved | 1949 |
| Succeeded by | Democratic Nationalist Party |
| Headquarters | Seoul |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Right-wing[1][4][5] |
| Colours | Green |
^A:The KDP belongs to theMinjudangkyeliberal party genealogy,not thepro-Rheeconservative party genealogyof South Korea, but the actual political stance at the time was right-wing conservative.[5][6] | |
| Korea Democratic Party | |
| Hangul | 한국민주당 |
|---|---|
| Hanja | Hàn Quốc Đảng Dân Chủ |
| Revised Romanization | Han-gukminjudang |
| McCune–Reischauer | Han'gukminjudang |
| This article is part ofa serieson |
| Liberalism in South Korea |
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| This article is part ofa serieson |
| Conservatism in South Korea |
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TheKorea Democratic Party(Korean:한국민주당;Hanja:Hàn Quốc Đảng Dân Chủ;RR:Hangukminjudang,KDP) was the leading opposition party in the first years of theFirst Republic of Korea.It existed from 1945 to 1949, when it merged with other opposition parties.
TheU.S. military governmenthas defined the KDP asconservativeswith high educational standards, and believed they wantedWestern democracy.[7]However, modern South Korean political academia recognizes them asSouth Korea's first liberal party.The KDP was right-wing, anti-communist,Confucian conservative,economically liberal, and anti-communist.[4]
History
[edit]The KDP was established in 1945 by conservative nationalists headed bySong Jin-woowho were opposed to thePeople's Republic of Koreagovernment set up byLyuh Woon-hyung,instead backing theProvisional Government of the Republic of Korea.[4]After Song was assassinated later in the year, he was succeeded as leader byKim Seong-su.[4]The Democratic Party won a third of the seats in theInterim Legislative Assembly electionsin October 1946, and although it opposed the Assembly's existence due to some of its leadership being excluded,[8]the party provided several of the key figures in the interim administration.[4]
However, its closeness to the American occupation force, together with its association with the landed gentry, meant that it never gained significant popular support.[4]In theMay 1948 electionsthe party won only 29 of the 200 seats, and although it supportedSyngman Rheein theJuly 1948 presidential elections,none of its members were included in his cabinet, a snub that led to the party joining the opposition.
On 10 February 1949, it merged with other groups in the legislature to form theDemocratic Nationalist Party.
Electoral results
[edit]| Election | Leader | Votes | % | Seats | Position | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948 | Kim Seong-su | 916,322 | 13.51 | 29 / 200
|
2nd | Opposition |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^abJames E. Hoare, ed. (2019).Historical Dictionary of Democratic People's Republic of Korea.Rowman & Littlefield.p. 323.ISBN9781538119747.
In December 1945, the United States Army Military Government proscribed it in the south, preferring to work with right-wing nationalist groups such as the Korea Democratic Party.
- ^Gerry van Tonder, ed. (2018).North Korea Invades the South: Across the 38th Parallel, June 1950.Pen and Sword.ISBN9781526708205.
... and the pro-American, right-wing movement, the Korean Democratic Party (KDP) were actively vying for political control. In North Korea, however,..
- ^Sheldon W. Simon, ed. (2016).East Asian Security in the Post-Cold War Era.Routledge.p. 61.ISBN9781315486604.
Widening divisions between Korean political rivals, most notably Kim Il-song's communist North Korean Workers' Party and Syngman Rhee's pro-American Korean Democratic Party (KDP) based in South Korea, complicated the task of managing a...
- ^abcdefHaruhiro Fukui (1985)Political parties of Asia and the Pacific,Greenwood Press, pp670–671
- ^abTosh Minohara, Evan Dawley, ed. (2020).Beyond Versailles: The 1919 Moment and a New Order in East Asia.Rowman & Littlefield.p. 111.ISBN9781498554473.
... and then after the war they rallied around the Korean Democratic Party, a conservative right-wing party....
- ^Hugh Dyson Walker, ed. (2012).East Asia: A New History.AuthorHouse.p. 610.ISBN9781477265161.
... Now led by members of the Korean Democratic Party, it retained nearly 80% of police who had formerly served under the Japanese. The right-wing outlook of the Korean Democratic Party kept conservative control in politics, the military,...
- ^FRUS, 1945, VI, pp. 1049-53, 1059-1061
- ^South Korea Under United States Occupation, 1945-48Library of Congress Country Studies
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| Related articles | |
- Defunct political parties in South Korea
- Political parties established in 1945
- Anti-communist parties
- Anti-communism in South Korea
- Classical liberal parties
- Social conservative parties
- Democratic parties in South Korea
- 1945 establishments in Korea
- Political parties disestablished in 1949
- 1949 disestablishments in South Korea