South Korea’s Park, Moon register for election after Ahn quits

Nominees from South Korea’s ruling and opposition parties registered candidacies for next month’s presidential election, squaring off after an independent withdrew from the race and endorsed the opposition.

Park Geun-hye, from the ruling New Frontier Party, and main opposition party challenger Moon Jae-in registered with the National Election Commission on Sunday ahead of the start of the official campaigning period on Tuesday, according to the candidates’ briefings reported on YTN TV.

At stake in the December 19 contest is stewardship of Asia’s fourth-biggest economy as the winner will have to tackle rising household debt and slowing growth after replacing Lee Myung-bak for a five-year term. Ahn Cheol-soo, an independent, withdrew from the race on Friday. Park, seeking to become the first female leader, said that she’ll quit politics unless she wins.

“If I fail to win the people’s trust in this presidential election, I’ll wrap up my journey as a politician,” Park, 60, said in a televised speech on Sunday. “Please allow me the last opportunity to serve the public.”

Park is leading in the contest, with 43.5 per cent support, compared with 39.9 per cent for Moon, according to a poll published on Monday in the Chosun Ilbo newspaper. The survey of 1,000 voters had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points and was conducted November 24-25, after Ahn withdrew.

Moon, 59, of the main opposition Democratic United Party, vowed to defeat Park while expressing gratitude to Ahn for the withdrawal.