By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter
A fierce fight is expected in a downtown electoral district, Seoul, as the bigwigs of liberal party declared their candidacy to compete with conservative party's candidates to run in major districts in Seoul including the Jongno district, called Korea's No. 1 political avenue, in the April 9 parliamentary elections.
Co-Chairman Sohn Hak-kyu of the main opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) threw his hat into the ring to run in the district.
The governing Grand National Party (GNP) also opened fire. It chose Park Jin, a two-term lawmaker, to vie with the liberal UDP's bigwig, who served as governor of Gyeonggi Province.
Another UDP heavyweight, Chung Dong-young, who unsuccessfully ran in December's presidential election, declared his bid to run in the Dongjak district, also in the capital. He was expected to run in Jongno but turned to the southwestern part of Seoul.
The GNP chose Rep. Lee Kyun-hyon as candidate for the Dongjak district.
GNP spokeswoman Na Kyung-won was picked as the party's candidate for Jung-gu, another downtown constituency in Seoul. Vying with Na there may be former Justice Minister Kang Geum-sil, a UDP source said.
Sohn said, ``By running in Jongno, I will overcome defeatism in the party and fight against the Lee Myung-bak government, which is only for the top 1 percent of the population.
``I feel a sense of duty to keep the government, which is showing arrogance and haughtiness, in check,'' he told a press conference.
Sohn aims at being a catalyst, as party leader, to leverage his fellows' successful run in Seoul and adjacent areas, political experts said.
The Jongno district is considered a symbol of Korean politics due to its long political history.
The area, where the National Assembly and the Government Complex were located, has been considered a barometer of public sentiment, as natives from various regions have resided there.
For a political party, success in Jongno can be construed as winning in other districts, political observers said.
The GNP pondered who would be the most likely candidate to beat the big shot after screening several hopefuls but chose Park, as he has performed well since winning the election in the district four years ago.
Park worked as a ranking member of the presidential transition committee.
A viable figure was Chung Mong-joon, the largest shareholder in Hyundai Heavy Industries and a confidant to President Lee. Chung is also chairman of the Korea Football Association.
He won Assembly seats in the southeastern industrial city of Ulsan, South Gyeongsang Province, five consecutive times but party members doubted whether he can win in Jongno.