In the upcoming final debate, which will focus on political issues and wrap up the three-part series, Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) who still leads the race with roughly 50 percent support in most polls, is expected to be assailed with tough questions by Kim Moon-soo of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) and Lee Jun-seok of the minor centrist Reform Party (RP). Also joining the debate is Kwon Young-kook of the minor progressive Democratic Labor Party.
According to last Friday's opinion poll by pollster Gallup Korea, the final one ahead of the June 3 snap election, the DP candidate secured 45 percent, down about six percentage points, while Kim Moon-soo jumped seven percentage points to garner 36 percent. The RP candidate, the youngest in the race, also rose by two percentage points to 10 percent, reaching double digits for the first time.
The proportion of respondents who remained undecided also fell from 12 percent to 8 percent.
As election day to decide South Korea's next president approaches, conservatives appeared to be rallying behind Kim, helping him narrow the gap with the frontrunner.
Buoyed by rising support, the emboldened Kim is seeking a last-minute merger with the RP in a bid to field a single candidate. If the two eventually unite, the race could fall within the margin of error. But it remains to be seen, as the younger Lee dismissed the chance to do so. In any case, any decision should be made by this Wednesday, just a day before the two-day early voting begins.
No more opinion polls can be released until South Koreans cast their ballots on June 3, so voters will remain in the dark about the impact, even if the two decide to unite at the last minute.
The election comes after the Constitutional Court of Korea's ruling early last month to impeach disgraced former President Yoon Suk Yeol over his botched martial law debacle late last year.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
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