People Power Party candidate Oh Se-hoon has pulled ahead of Democratic Party of Korea candidate Jeong Won-oh in the Seoul mayoral race for the first time in the June 3 local elections.
As of 7:20 a.m. Thursday, Oh held 48.66 percent of the vote, edging past Jeong's 48.62 percent, according to the National Election Commission.
Exit polls released at 6 p.m. had pointed to a Jeong victory. A joint survey by three major broadcasters — KBS, MBC and SBS — showed Jeong leading with 51.4 percent against Oh's 46 percent, while a separate JTBC projection put Jeong at 53.5 percent and Oh at 42.9 percent. Jeong had long anticipated a tight finish. "I predicted months ago that the Seoul race would come down to the wire, and I have been preparing accordingly," he said. Oh had similarly forecast a two-horse contest.
Seoul has been widely regarded as the most fiercely contested battleground of this election cycle. Voting ran from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, with early voting held May 29 and May 30. Jeong framed the race in national terms, urging voters to support "an election that gives strength to the Lee Jae Myung government." Oh appealed to his base with a different message: "Please leave Seoul — the last line of defense — in our hands."
cook@heraldcorp.com
