South Korea’s ruling conservative party suffered an unexpected defeat in a parliamentary election on Wednesday, local media said early on Thursday, based on election commission data, in a stinging blow to president Park Geun-hye. The loss by Park’s Saenuri party, which had been expected to regain a majority, will mean her government will face more deadlock in the national assembly as she tries to push through her legislative agenda to boost a sluggish economy. The defeat is also likely to dent prospects for the party to field a winning candidate in the presidential vote scheduled late next year to succeed Park for a single five-year term.
Saenuri took 122 of the 300 seats in the single-chamber national assembly, while the main opposition Minjoo Party won 123 seats and the People’s Party grabbed 38, KBS television and Yonhap news said.
The National Election Commission had not formally announced the final result as of 5.30am local time (21.30 GMT) with 99.9% of the votes counted.
“Saenuri Party humbly accepts the result of the election,” the party said in a statement. “We failed to read the people’s mind when the people were full of disappointment and rebuke.”
Full Article: South Korea elections: ruling conservative party loses majority | World news | The Guardian.
