By Jun Ji-hye
Leading presidential candidates have entered a head-on collision course over the envisioned extension of voting hours in the presidential poll slated for Dec. 19.
The possible extension has emerged as a significant campaign issue as it will greatly influence the voter turnout which will decisively affect the election result.
Moon Jae-in of the Democratic United Party (DUP) took the initiative by saying Wednesday he will accept a bill proposed by ruling Saenuri Party that calls for returning a government subsidy if a candidate withdraws from an election.
In return for his acceptance of the bill, Moon urged the ruling party to cooperate in extending the voting hours as suggested by the opposition. Saenuri Party expressed some misgivings over the issue, apparently for fear that such extension will help liberal candidates.
The dispute initially flared up when Sanuri Party’s Lee Jung-hyun, PR chief for the party’s presidential candidate Park Geun-hye, suggested bipartisan negotiation for
simultaneous handling of both bills: returning a government subsidy proposed by the ruling party and voting hour extension suggested by the opposition DUP.
On Thursday, Hwang Woo-yeo, chairman of the conservative party, said in a meeting that “The nature of both bills is totally different. It is inappropriate to use one to pass the other.”
Party Secretary General Seo Byung-soo claimed, “Moon’s acceptance of the bill was a foregone conclusion. The DUP should not pretend they sacrificed something big.”
“They act as if only the extension of polling hours will help increase turnout. It is a distortion,” Seo added.
Regarding Lee’s suggestion, the party said it was his own idea that has not been discussed within the party.
DUP floor leader Park Jie-won criticized the ruling party, saying “It was Saenuri that pursued both bills simultaneously, but as soon as Moon accepted their bill, they dismissed Lee’s suggestion as a personal opinion.”
Rep. Lee Seok-hyun of DUP joined the criticism and said, “Lee Jung-hyun is regarded as Park Geun-hye’s mouthpiece and he clearly made those comments in front of the press.”
DUP’s Moon and independent contender Ahn Cheol-soo called for the extension of the polling time by two hours until 8 p.m. to allow more people to exercise their voting rights.
Current voting time in Korea is from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. It is said the extension of polling hours typically tends to favor liberal candidates’ approval ratings.
Park and Saenuri are concerned about the extra cost that will be incurred for extending voting hours, as the National Election Commission (NEC) claimed it will cost nearly 10 billion won ($9.1 million) to do so.
Ahn's spokeswoman and lawyer Jeon Yeon-soon attacked the ruling party and its contender, saying "It is not right to mention financial issues when talking about allowing more people to vote."
Under the current law, a party that fields a presidential candidate is given election subsidies proportional to the number of seats it has in the National Assembly, and there is no obligation to return the money if its contender withdraws before the scheduled polling day.