Rep. Moon Jae-in, a lawyer-turned-politician, won his seventh straight victory in a regional primary of the Democratic United Party (DUP) on Tuesday, coming closer to securing the main opposition party's presidential candidacy ahead of the Dec. 19 polls.
Moon, a former chief of staff to the late President Roh Moo-hyun, secured 11,683 votes, or 45.09 percent of ballots cast.
Of 41,388 people eligible to vote in the South Gyeongsang Province primary, 25,908 people cast their votes, the party's election committee said.
Former South Gyeongsang Province Governor Kim Doo-kwan finished a close second by grabbing 43.93 percent or 11,381 votes, helped by supporters who elected him to office in 2010. Former DUP Chairman Sohn Hak-kyu came in third by winning 9.43 percent of the votes, followed by former Commerce Minister Chung Sye-kyun with 1.54 percent. Moon has secured 45.95 percent of all votes cast so far, totaling 61,904 ballots, followed by Sohn with 22.64 percent, Kim with 20.35 percent and Chung with 11.06 percent.
After the regional election results were announced, Moon stressed that it is time for the party to look beyond the primary and seek unity.
"Once the race is over, it will be time for all sides to work together," he stressed. The contender added that he will be the first to take steps to seek reconciliation with rivals.
Moon's winning streak has been widely expected, as the 59-year-old candidate has led public opinion polls among the four hopefuls competing for the party's nomination.
Despite Moon's strong showing within the party, nationwide opinion polls show the first-term lawmaker, falling behind the ruling Saenuri Party candidate Park Geun-hye and Ahn Cheol-soo, a software entrepreneur-turned-professor who is popular among young and urban voters.
Ahn, who is not affiliated with any political party, has not yet announced his bid to run for president.
The DUP, meanwhile, is expected to announce the final winner of its regional primaries on Sept. 16, but if no candidate receives more than 50 percent of all votes cast, a run-off election will be held a week later. (Yonhap)