Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Tuesday stressed the need to unify the conservative presidential candidacy ahead of the June 3 election amid efforts to collaborate with People Power Party candidate Kim Moon-soo.
Han, who registered as an independent preliminary candidate, made the remarks during a debate session with journalists when asked about negotiations to form a unified candidacy with Kim.
"I have never imagined that unifying candidacies would fail," Han said, without elaborating on details. "Failure to unify the candidacies would be a major betrayal of the people."
Han has reached out to Kim's camp to discuss merging their candidacies to better challenge Democratic Party contender Lee Jae-myung, who continues to hold a strong lead in recent opinion polls.
The 75-year-old technocrat has emerged as a strong contender in the conservative camp for the June election to replace former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was ousted over his martial law declaration. Han, who had served as acting president, resigned Thursday and announced his bid the next day.
To register as a unified candidate, Han and Kim must agree before May 11, the deadline for official candidate registration with the National Election Commission. (Yonhap)
