South Korea’s main opposition party said Monday its candidates, who had been forecast an easy victory, now faced a tight battle with conservatives in the run-up to this week’s general election. The centre-left Democratic United Party (DUP) had been tipped for an easy win in polls on Wednesday, a key test of sentiment before a presidential vote in December, but DUP leader Han Myeong-Sook admits the race is neck-and-neck. “We are now in an emergency situation and seized with a sense of crisis,” Han told reporters. A higher voter turnout would benefit opposition candidates who are more popular among younger voters, the DUP leader said. “If you cast ballots, the people will win. If not, the administration of (President) Lee Myung-Bak will win,” Han said.
Publication of detailed opinion polls is banned. But Yonhap news agency said Monday neither side was expected to win a majority of seats. The races are especially tight in Seoul and surrounding areas where 49 percent of the country’s 38.9 million eligible voters live, Yonhap said. The conservative New Frontier Party (NFP) is striving to preserve its parliamentary majority in the 300-member legislature and to secure a second successive presidential victory in December.
Full Article: AFP: S. Korea opposition admits tight election contest.