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By-elections to test Park presidency, spark opposition shakeup

By Choi He-suk 

Voters in 12 districts will go to the polls Wednesday in parliamentary and local by-elections which will be the first electoral test for President Park Geun-hye and a harbinger of a major realignment of liberal opposition groups.

The elections are held at 283 polling stations across the country from 6:00 a.m. to 8 p.m. Initial results are expected at around 10 p.m.

At stake are three parliamentary seats, two chief local administration posts and seven seats at local assemblies, according to the National Election Commission.

In parliamentary races, independent Ahn Cheol-soo and the Saenuri Party’s Kim Moo-sung and Lee Wan-koo are deemed likely to clinch victory in their respective constituencies.

Ahn, who ran for the presidency last year before bowing out in favor of the Democratic United Party’s Rep. Moon Jae-in, is considered the firm favorite for Seoul’s Nowon C constituency.

Ahn’s victory is expected to start a major shakeup of the opposition, currently dominated by the Democratic United Party, which is suffering from factional divide and the fallout of its defeat in the presidential election last December.

A recent survey by a local broadcaster placed Ahn more than 20 percentage points ahead of the ruling Saenuri Party’s Huh Joon-young.

Many observers including former DUP floor leader Rep. Park Jie-won predicted that Ahn’s victory was almost certain. There were, however, voices of doubt that said the race may not be as clear cut, adding that the ruling party’s clout could not be ignored.

Kim, who is the favorite for Busan’s Yeongdo constituency, is a veteran politician who served as the floor leader of the ruling party under its precusor the Grand National Party from 2010 to 2011.

In addition, Kim served a key role in President Park Geun-hye’s election campaign last year, a fact he has not neglected to mention in his own campaign.

“I, who was a top contributor in launching the Park Geun-hye administration, will become the top contributor in making the administration a success. I will use that power in becoming the top contributor to the advancement of Yeongdo and Busan,” Kim said in a statement on Tuesday.

Aided by his political standing and by the Saenuri Party, which enjoys high support ratings in the southern port city, Kim has been leading his rivals by a large margin from early on.

In a recent survey, Kim was selected by 53.3 percent of the respondents, while the DUP’s Kim Bi-oh received 16.1 percent support.

Lee, a former governor of South Chungcheong Province, is running for the Buyeo-Cheongyang constituency in the same province and recent surveys placed him as much as 56.8 percentage points ahead of the closest rival.

(cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)