S. Koreans go to polls in parliamentary election
SEOUL. KAZINFORM - South Koreans went to the polls on Wednesday to elect 300 members of parliament, in an election widely viewed as a midterm evaluation of President Park Geun Hye's administration, Kyodo reports.
The ruling Saenuri Party, the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea and the minor opposition People's Party are vying in the election, also seen as a crucial indicator of the future direction for the presidential election set for December next year.
The conservative ruling party is highly likely to secure more than 150 seats to regain a majority in the unicameral legislature, and the reformist MPK gets more than 100 while the People's Party is to become a parliamentary negotiating body by getting at least 20 seats, according to analysts and media reports.
The voter turnout stood at 46.5 percent as of 3 p.m., according to the Central Election Commission. The final turnout is expected to be around 58 percent, higher than the 54.2 percent recorded at the previous election four years ago.
The economy has featured strongly during the election campaign, as South Korea's local economy is in a lingering slump, with opposition party candidates focusing their campaigning efforts on highlighting the perceived failed economic policies of Park.
South Korea's household debt rose to a record 1,200 trillion won ($1.04 trillion) by the end of last year, and the unemployment rate for Koreans aged 15 to 29 hit an all-time record high of 12.5 percent in February amid the economic slump.
The quadrennial election also came at a time when tensions on the Korean Peninsula remain high after the U.N. Security Council imposed tough sanctions on North Korea last month after it carried out a nuclear test in January and launched a long-range rocket, suspected to be a cover for a test of banned ballistic missile technology, a month later.
In response, North Korea has threatened to launch military strikes against South Korea and the United States, and has also launched a series of projectiles and missiles.
It remains to be seen how voters will judge President Park's tough policy line in dealing with North Korea.
More than 42 million people are eligible to vote in the election. Counting will take place in more than 250 vote-counting stations and results are expected around midnight. The nation's three major broadcasters said they will announce the results of their joint exit polls after the ballot.
Voting ends at 6 p.m.