South Korea’s presidential election candidates begin their official campaigns
Seoul: According to Yonhap, the political contenders for the June 3 presidential election began their formal campaign on Monday. Yonhap claims that Lee Jae-myung, a candidate for the Democratic Party (DP), had dominated the election based on surveys.
Following the overthrow of former President Yoon Suk Yeol due to his unsuccessful attempt to impose martial law in December, South Korean voters are expected to terminate three years of conservative government, according to polls.
The front-runner, Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party, is followed by Kim Moon-soo of the People Power Party (PPP), a former labor minister. Yonhap claims that a dispute inside the party over a potential candidacy merger with former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo just two days earlier guaranteed his candidacy.
Notably, Kim is anticipated to rally conservative supporters to oppose the DP candidate, while Lee has pledged to improve the economy and people’s quality of life.
Over the course of the two-day registration process that ended on Sunday, seven candidates officially submitted their bids. According to Yonhap, seven candidates have registered with the election body, the National Election Commission.
It has been noted that candidates and their campaign staff are permitted to speak in public from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. 11 p.m. and 7 a.m.
During the formal campaign time, they are also permitted to display campaign banners and distribute pamphlets and other campaign materials.
According to Yonhap, Lee was given the number one spot, followed by Kim at number two and Lee Jun-seok of the tiny New Reform Party at number four.
According to the legislation, the number of candidates is determined by the number of seats a party has in the National Assembly, with the party with the most seats being given priority, Yonhap said.
According to reports, No. 3 was left empty since the Rebuilding Korea Party did not submit a candidate, while Nos. 5-8 were awarded to two independent candidates and two members of small parties.
The election, which was set off by the impeachment of former President Yoon due to his unsuccessful attempt to impose martial rule in December, has turned out to be a fight between the DP’s Lee and Kim, according to the Yonhap report.