Editor’s note: Korea Pro’s regular ‘Election Watch’ series covers key political developments in South Korea leading to the April 10 General Elections.

An exodus of high-profile lawmakers from the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) mere weeks before South Korea’s general elections has laid bare deep-seated issues in the party’s candidate selection process.

Criticisms have centered on the party leadership’s subjective system for scoring lawmakers, which influences which candidate runs on the party’s ticket for a given seat. 

Detractors say the system disproportionately favors those lawmakers deemed loyal to the party’s scandal-plagued leader, Lee Jae-myung, who remains under investigation for multiple