It is election time in Korea. The campaigns for gubernatorial, mayoral and local council elections, as well as by-elections for 12 parliamentary seats to be held on June 13, are set to start on Thursday, June 7, 2018.
The ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) party is expected to sweep the elections. Its candidates for 2,280 public servant posts, including 17 mayors and governors, and 17 education superintendents will be campaigning tirelessly in the next few days.
All parties are wooing voters with pledges and slogans. The ruling DPKis expecting to reap the fruits of recent North Korea peace overtures with its slogan, "Peace and the Economy." DPK expects big win over its main opposition, Liberty Korea Party (LKP) nation-wide.
According to recent reports, the Democratic mayoral candidate in Busan, Mr. Oh Geo-don, is leading in approval ratings against the conservative main opposition, LKP.
The pre-election polls show Oh Geo-don with a 50.5% approval rating against 20.4% LKP’s Such Byung-soo, the current mayor of Busan.
Recently the Asia Pacific Business and Technology Report attended events organized by Oh Geo-don’s campaign. Below are excerpts of the conversations.
Q1. What was the main purpose of yesterday's event held by the Real Estate Policy Committee?
- On June 4, around 300 people gathered in down town Busan to pledge support for our election campaign. The Real Estate Policy Committee has been serving in various parts of Busan for quite some time. Recently it acquired nationally recognized certification as a certified real estate agency. Although there are 7,750 real estate brokerage offices operating in Busan, the market has been getting sluggish and the new opportunities are closing. Of the 10,000 members in the Busan area, the 300 vice chairmen of the 23 committees under the Real Estate Policy Committee gathered and declared their support our polices and agenda.
