By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
Lee Myung-bak, a presidential contender of the main opposition Grand National Party (GNP), is maintaining his lead with support of around 48.9 percent in a poll published by the Munhwa Ilbo newspaper on Thursday.
Park Geun-hye, former chairwoman of the GNP, ranked second with 22.4 percent, followed by the independent Sohn Hak-kyu with 4.6 percent. Sohn, a former governor of Gyeonggi Province, bolted from the GNP earlier this year.
Lee, a former Seoul mayor, said that he will help his party rival Park win the Dec. 19 presidential election if he loses in the primary.
In an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo newspaper, Lee said he plans to propose to Park that whoever gets the primary, the loser will help the winner to presidential election victory.
``I think establishing a culture that a loser accepts the result of a competition is more important than winning the election,'' Lee said.
The remarks came amid speculation that one of the two top-tier GNP contenders may quit the party after the primary slated for August, to run as an independent in the presidential race.
Earlier this week, the two hopefuls reached a compromise on nomination rules after Lee agreed to exclude a controversial clause on opinion polls to be reflected more in the primary.
The two camps, however, remain at odds.
Park has vowed to examine Lee's qualifications, while Lee is denouncing the move as a negative campaign tactic.