Rival parties agreed Friday to open a parliamentary plenary session next week to discuss the issue of redrawing electoral districts, said a ruling-party lawmaker.

The Saenuri Party and the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy failed to redraw the electoral constituency map last month and failed to meet their self-imposed deadline for the general elections slated for next April.

"The plenary session will be held on Tuesday," Won Yoo-cheol, floor leader of the ruling Saneuri Party, told reporters, without commenting on whether the issue will be put to a vote.

Election officials said candidates cannot register for the parliamentary elections unless the electoral districts are redrawn by Tuesday.

The rival parties are required to redraw electoral districts as the Constitutional Court ruled last year that the current electoral map was unconstitutional, citing unequal representation.

The court said that the population differences between electoral districts should be reduced to two-to-one, noting the most populous electoral districts outweigh the least populous three seats to one.

The rival parties are at odds over the number of elected parliamentary seats in rural areas and proportional representation.

The Saenuri Party has proposed maintaining the 300-seat National Assembly by increasing the number of constituencies while reducing the number of lawmakers elected on proportional tickets, which currently stands at 54.

The NPAD has opposed the plan, saying it will bring out more regionalism in local politics and wants to maintain the number of seats given to proportional representation members.

"Contentious bills will be discussed (by lawmakers) at parliamentary committees," Lee Jong-kul, floor leader of the NPAD, told Yonhap News Agency.

The 100-day regular session wrapped up Tuesday without the endorsement of the set of bills designed to revitalize the country's economy, after the rival parties failed to narrow their differences. (Yonhap)