[2018 Local elections] Campaigns start amid US-NK talks

Official campaigning begins Thursday for next month’s local elections and parliamentary by-elections in South Korea, amid ongoing talks between North Korea and the US. 

Nationwide campaigning will take place until the eve of the elections on June 13 in a time of high-approval ratings for President Moon Jae-in, who took office in May last year and promised inter-Korean peace.

Aided by Moon’s latest average approval rating of 72.7 percent, according to surveys by five leading polling organizations, the ruling Democratic Party stands at an advantage.

The Democratic Party’s approval rating stands at 51 percent, according to the latest poll by Gallup Korea last month, far ahead of the main conservative opposition Liberty Korea Party, whose rating stands at 11 percent.

During the 13-day campaigning period, candidates will be competing for the posts of 17 province and metropolis chiefs and 226 heads of smaller administrative units.

In the parliamentary by-elections, National Assembly seats for 12 districts nationwide will be up for grabs. In addition, 824 seats in provincial and metropolitan assemblies, 2,927 lower-level local councilors and 17 superintendents of education will be decided.

The result of the upcoming elections is widely expected to be affected by the recent rapprochement between the two Koreas and the possible summit between the North and the US.

Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un have held two inter-Korean summits including a recent surprise meeting last week.

Rep. Choo Mi-ae, chair of the ruling party, said Tuesday in a meeting with foreign reporters that the party “assumes a responsible attitude in the June 13 local elections to preserve peace (on the peninsula) and revitalize the economy.”

“The Moon administration is trying to remove the security fences along the border as part of fundamental measures to accelerate sluggish economic growth,” Choo said, adding that the peace process is relevant to the country’s economy.

Meanwhile, Hong Joon-pyo, chairman of the Liberty Korea Party, said earlier on his Facebook account that the Moon administration “is not focused on denuclearization itself but on being an advocate of the North’s requests.”

By Bak Se-hwan (sh@heraldcorp.com)