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A National Election Commission poster released ahead of the presidential election on Dec. 19. Featuring the actor Kim Myung-min, the NEC's goodwill ambassador, the posters urge voters to make their choice based on presidential candidates¡¯ policies by giving U.S., British and South African examples from 1861, 1940 and 1994.
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Only a week after twelve presidential candidates, the largest number ever, registered their candidacy, it has become clear that the race is essentially between three of them. With 16 days left until election day, Monday saw a realignment of political groups when the influential independent lawmaker Chung Mong-joon, a scion of the Hyundai family, declared his support for Lee Myung-bak of the Grand National Party, while candidate Sim Dae-pyong of the People First Party decided to throw his weight behind the traditional conservative Lee Hoi-chang, who is running on an independent ticket, and former justice minister Kang Keum-sil came out in favor of Chung Dong-young of the United New Democratic Party.
On joining the GNP, Chung Mong-joon held a press conference at party headquarters where he said, "The upcoming presidential election will choose the next leader who will conduct wide-ranging reform. The selection is so important that it will determine the future fate of the country. At this significant juncture, I can no longer afford to sit on the fence as an independent lawmaker." Lee Myung-bak is incidentally a former executive of Hyundai Engineering and Construction.
At his own party headquarters, Sim Dae-pyong signed an agreement making Lee Hoi-chang the single candidate. "We should not entrust important state affairs either to irresponsible left-wing idealists who only have a sleek tongue or to the corrupt and immoral reactionaries who give preferential treatment to the wealthy," he said.
Kang, meanwhile, was attending a meeting of the UNDP campaign committee, where she said, "Candidate Chung Dong-young is the best choice with a legitimate mandate from the reform-minded forces in the broader ruling camp." She vowed to "tell the people of Chung's desire for peace on the Korean Peninsula and for the happiness of ordinary people."
Lee Hoi-chang, a septuagenarian two-time loser of presidential elections who unexpectedly emerged from retirement, on a radio talk show that morning said, "Winning the presidential election has never been my sole intention." That suggests he will resume political activities after the presidential election, including a role in the general election slated for next April. The remark also precludes any last-minute agreement between the two Lees for a single candidate. In Korea's complex, region-driven political landscape, the GNP's power base lies in the Gyeongsang areas and the UNDP's in the Jeolla areas. It remains to be seen whether the Lee Hoi-chang-Sim Dae-pyong alliance can develop into a third political force based in the Chungcheong areas where both have their support.
The various groups in the broader ruling camp inched closer to producing a single candidate after all. Candidate Moon Kook-hyun of the Creative Korea Party cancelled his campaign schedule Monday to focus on his future course. CKP spokesperson Kim Kap-soo said, "Candidate Moon is thinking hard about how to bring progressive forces together." If Chung Dong-young and Moon clinch a deal, Rhee In-je of the Democratic Party, who is determined to campaign until the last moment, will come under pressure to sacrifice himself for the greater good of the Left too.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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