DP says it is dominant in 71 electoral districts, UFP in 40

Apr 02, 2020, 09:15 am

By AsiaToday reporters Lim Yoo-jin & Kim Yeon-ji

The official campaign period for the April 15 general elections will kick off Thursday and run through April 14. Since early voting is set for April 10-11, the election is just a week away. The ruling Democratic Party (DP) and the main opposition United Future Party (UFP) expect fierce competition in the upcoming elections. Since the two rival parties created “satellite parties” for the first time in the constitutional history in a bid to win more proportional representation seats, they are keeping a close watch on the public support on the paper parties as well.

As of Wednesday, the DP sees a strong chance of winning in 71 out of 253 electoral districts, while the UFP counts 40 districts as its strongholds. More than 130 voting districts are expected to be hotly contested, making it hard to predict the outcome. The DP picked 16 districts in Seoul, 23 in Gyeonggi, 2 in Incheon, 23 in Honam, 3 in Yeongnam, 15 in Chungcheong, and 4 in Gangwon and Jeju as its strongholds. The UFP analyzed that it would be dominant in 3 districts in Seoul, 4 in Gyeonggi, 12 in Daegu and North Gyeongsang (collectively known as TK region), 14 in Busan, Ulsan, and Gyeongnam, and 5 in Chungcheong.

The capital Seoul and the surrounding areas will be the biggest battlefields. Among 49 constituencies in Seoul, the DP believes it is dominant in 16 districts, including Jongno, Dongdaemun-A, Gangbuk-B, Nowon-B, Jungrang-A, and Seodaemun-A districts while the UFP says it is dominant in 4 districts, including Gangnam-A, Gangnam-B, and Gangnam-C districts. Among 59 seats in Gyeonggi, the ruling party says it will win 23 seats while the main opposition party expects to win 4 seats.

The DP and the UFP expect they will dominate in Honam and Yeongnam, respectively. The DP expects to regain a number of seats in Honam that were mostly lost to People Party in the 20th general elections. Of the 28 constituencies in Honam, the ruling party expects it will gain 23 seats while the main opposition party expects it won’t win any of them. On the other hand, the UFP believes it will win 12 out of 25 electoral districts in TK region, 14 out of 40 districts in Busan, Ulsan and Gyeongnam region. The DP presumes it is slightly leading in Busan’s BukGangseo-A and Jingu-A districts against rival parties.

In the 28-seat Chungcheong region, the DP selected 15 districts as its strongholds, including Sejong-A, Sejong-B, Seogu-A & B, Yooseong-A & B. The UFP thinks it will win in 5 districts, including Daejeon’s Donggu and Daedeok.

“Since the voting results for Honam and Yeongnam regions are somewhat predictable, the final result will depend on voters in the metropolitan area,” said political commentator Hwang Tae-soon. “I think the gap between the winner and the second place in around 25 seats would be very tight in the upcoming elections.”

#Democratic Party #United Future Party #April 15 #general election