Seoul: Presidential candidates are ramping up their campaigns with just one week left until the June election on Tuesday, as Democratic Party (DP) candidate Lee Jae-myung continues to lead a tightening three-way race, with People Power Party (PPP) rival Kim Moon-soo steadily closing the gap.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Lee has led polls in the race shaped by the fallout from former President Yoon Suk Yeol's botched martial law declaration in December, which ultimately led to his ouster, but Kim has been narrowing the margin on the back of conservative support.
In the final stretch of the campaign before two-day early voting begins Thursday, Kim is making a last-ditch effort to unify his candidacy with Lee Jun-seok, the candidate of the minor New Reform Party (NRP) and a former PPP leader, who recently garnered double-digit support.
A Realmeter survey released Saturday showed support for the DP's Lee at 46.6 percent, followed by Kim with 37.6 percent and the NRP's Lee with 10.4 percent. The public release of new opinion polls will be prohibited beginning Wednesday under election law, leaving this week's surveys as the last indicators of voter sentiment before election day.
Lee Jun-seok, the youngest candidate at 40 who supported Yoon's impeachment, has vowed to stay in the race until the end despite mounting pressure from the PPP. Kim won the PPP's ticket on the back of staunch conservative support after he refused to apologize over Yoon's martial law declaration, though he ultimately issued a formal apology over public distress caused by the former president's action.
Lee Jae-myung was cautious over a possible conservative alignment ahead of the election, dismissing their potential alliance as an attempt to unite "insurrection forces." All three candidates are scheduled to participate in the final televised debate later in the day, a high-stakes showdown expected to feature intense clashes over politics, national security, and other contentious issues.