UPDATES WITH KIM RETAINING CANDIDACY; REVISES HEADLINE, DECK, LEDE
By Saadet Gokce and Islamuddin Sajid
ISTANBUL (AA) - South Korea’s ruling party has failed to replace its presidential candidate with former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Saturday, local media reported on Saturday.
People Power Party (PPP) reinstated Kim Moon-soo as the party's presidential candidate after the members voted down the replacement motion, according to the Yonhap News Agency.
Party members had an all-party vote to decide on whether to replace Kim and nullify the primary that decided on him earlier, at an emergency meeting.
PPP sought to replace Kim after unification talks between Han and Kim collapsed, causing fear in the party for the election result, considering opposition candidate Lee Jae-myung being a front-runner by a wide margin in polls.
Kim is set to be registered as the official PPP candidate on Sunday – the last day of registration.
South Korea will hold a snap presidential election on June 3 after the Constitutional Court removed former President Yoon Suk Yeol from office.
According to a recent JoongAng Ilbo poll, Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung remains the front-runner with 47% support, followed by Han at 23%, Kim at 13%, and Reform Party candidate Lee Jun-seok at 4%.