South Korea's new president set for boost in elections

SEOUL (BLOOMBERG) - South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol's conservative party is expected to keep control of the mayor's office in the country's two biggest cities in his first election test, which comes about three weeks after he took office.

Polling indicates the president's People Power Party (PPP) will retain the top post in Seoul and Busan in the nationwide vote Wednesday (June 1) for local offices.

The PPP also has a slight chance of taking the country's most populous province of Gyeonggi, which encircles Seoul and houses major firms, from the progressive Democratic Party, according to final polls released last week from broadcasters KBS, SBS and MBC.

One key issue for voters is housing prices that doubled in urban centres such as Seoul during the term of former President Moon Jae-in of the Democratic Party - as wages failed to keep pace.

Mr Yoon has pledged to build thousands of housing units and make rents affordable but hasn't been in office long enough to make any real impact.

Voting will run through 7.30pm (6.30pm Singapore time) at more than 14,000 stations, with exit polling released soon after.

In the last election four years ago, the Democratic Party took 14 of the 17 posts for provincial governors and mayors of major cities.

"This election will determine the extent of political power Yoon would have to push parts of his policy agendas," said Professor Shin Yul, a political science expert at Myongji University in Seoul.

He added if the PPP takes the Gyeonggi, then the conservative party would have a strong political base in Seoul and its surrounding areas to advance its domestic priorities.

As of 1pm local time, voter turnout reached 38.3 per cent, according to the National Election Commission, which was lower than the 43.5 per cent at the same point in the last election four years ago.

Mr Yoon has pledged to spur economic growth driven by the private sector, but his policy priorities are hitting a roadblock in the National Assembly, where the Democratic Party hold a supermajority in the Parliament. This could force the president and the PPP to try to make changes at the local level.

The mayor of Seoul is considered one of the top elected offices in the country and its current holder, conservative Oh Se-hoon, looks to be well ahead of former Democratic Party chair Song Young-gil in the race, polling showed.

Parliament approved a record extra budget this week that had been forged during the presidential transition. It's likely to be the last round of such fiscal support to offset the economic impact of coronavirus, given escalating inflationary pressure is now the key challenge.

The man who challenged Mr Yoon for the presidency, Mr Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party, is also running for a Member of Parliament seat in a special election taking place in Incheon on the same day. A loss would be an embarrassment for the party and could derail the political career of the person who was its flag-bearer a few months ago.

"This election would inevitably have an impact not only the general election in 2024," Prof Shin said, "but also the next presidential election in five years."