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| Moon Jae-in, alongside Democratic Party of Korea Chairwoman Rep. Choo Mi-ae, waves to the crowd at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, Tuesday, after he was nominated as the party's presidential candidate. / Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk |
By Kim Hyo-jin
Moon Jae-in, former leader of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), was elected as the party's candidate for the May 9 presidential election, Monday.
Moon swept all of the four primary elections, each by a large margin, avoiding a run-off election.
In the last primary, he garnered 60.4 percent of votes ahead of Seongnam Mayor Lee Jae-myung and South Chungcheong Province Governor An Hee-jung who received 22 percent and 17.3 percent, respectively.
He won a total of 57 percent of the votes in all of the primaries ― An gained 21.5 percent, while Lee had 21.2 percent.
"Thank you for your tremendous support. I will pay you back with a victory on May 9," Moon said in an acceptance speech at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul.
He vowed to revitalize the stagnant economy, strengthen national security, and eradicate corruption, irregularities and injustice, mindful of the presidential corruption scandal that has hit the country hard.
Moon will vie for the top elected post against Hong Joon-pyo of the former ruling Liberty Korea Party (LKP), the conservative Bareun Party's Yoo Seong-min, and the minor Justice Party's Sim Sang-jung.
Ahn Cheol-soo of the People's Party is expected to join the race. Ahn, the party's ex-leader has won sweeping victories in primary polls so far, raising speculation he will win the party's nomination at the last party convention slated for today.
The latest Realmeter poll showed that Moon topped a five-way competition with support of 43 percent, followed by Ahn with 22.7 percent, Hong with 10.2 percent, and Yoo and Sim, each with 3.9 percent.
Moon has been the strongest contender since the corruption scandal involving former President Park Geun-hye erupted, followed by her impeachment and removal from office. In the liberal-tilting presidential race, the former opposition leader has led opinion polls with support of over 30 percent for weeks.
Moon's high popularity reflects the publics' wish for an end to the decade-long conservative rule, according to observers. Moon was defeated by Park in the 2012 election, but has used this experience for his campaign, saying he is the only "verified and prepared" presidential candidate.
Political commentators say whether other competitors join hands to field a unified candidate against Moon could be a challenge to his bid.
"If not in a one-on-one competition, Moon will win the final race," said Bae Jong-chan, the chief director of pollster Research and Research. Although an alliance among Ahn, Hong and Yoo is not a likely scenario, he said.
The talk of an alliance among conservative parties has already got off to a rough start with Hong and Yoo exchanging barbs. Hong dubbed Yoo, who is leading the party that broke away from the LKP, a "traitor" while Yoo questioned Hong's qualification to be a presidential candidate as he faces a Supreme Court ruling on his involvement in a bribery scandal.
Ahn has so far dismissed the possibility of forming an alliance with any other forces. If he joins hands with the LKP ― of which Park is still a member ― Ahn would risk losing his main support base, voters in the Jeolla region, the liberals' home turf.
An offensive by other contenders is expected to escalate against Moon. Political analyst Hwang Tae-soon said that Moon would have to clarify his position on the deployment of a U.S. anti-missile system and views on North Korea.
Moon has only claimed the issue of placing a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery here should be postponed until the launch of the new government. Earlier, his comment that he intends to visit North Korea first if he takes power, produced a barrage of attacks by conservatives who put the country's highest priority on the alliance with the United States. These issues still remain a possible point of contention, Hwang said.
Another challenge for Moon is if he can heal the wounds between him and his rivals in party's primaries, said Lee Jun-han, a politics professor at Incheon National University. Whether An and Lee Jae-myung deliver a robust endorsement will affect whether he can gain further momentum in the presidential race, he noted.
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