Moon woos voters in central, southwestern regions

Opposition presidential candidate Moon Jae-in reached out to voters in the country's central and southwestern regions Monday as competition intensified between the ruling and opposition camps to win over swing voters in those areas ahead of the Dec. 19 election. Moon, the 59-year-old standard-bearer of the main opposition Democratic United Party (DUP), headed to the central city of Cheongju, about 137 kilometers south of Seoul, on his first regional trip since becoming the unified candidate to represent the liberal camp. Liberal independent Ahn Cheol-soo, who was widely popular especially among the younger generation, withdrew his candidacy Friday amid a deadlock in talks to select a single opposition candidate to challenge ruling party front-runner Park Geun-hye. The software mogul-turned-politician bowed out as public opinion polls continued to show certain victory for Park in the event of a three-way race, saying he would help the opposition achieve a transfer of power. Moon's stop in Cheongju came one day before the ruling Saenuri Party candidate is scheduled to visit the city, with both sides trying to woo voters in the traditional battleground area. "I will double the number of public childcare facilities and make sure the state funds any additional (childcare) costs," Moon said during a meeting with mothers and their newborns at a local obstetrics and gynaecology clinic. Welfare has been a major election issue, with both the ruling and opposition camps pledging to expand state support for child-rearing, college tuition fees and healthcare, among other services. Later in the day, the DUP contender visited the southwestern city of Gwangju as opinion polls indicated a growing number of swing voters there following Ahn's withdrawal. Gwangju and the surrounding Jeolla provinces have been a liberal stronghold in past elections, but Park has received "higher than usual" approval ratings in those regions. The Saenuri candidate is the daughter of late President Park Chung-hee who is credited with bringing about South Korea's economic growth, particularly among the older generation. The president, however, is widely criticized for his authoritarian rule and suppression of democracy. Meanwhile, the DUP announced it will drop out of the race for governor of South Gyeongsang Province and support independent candidate Kwon Young-ghil in the election scheduled to be held on the same day as the presidential poll. Kim Boo-kyum, a campaign manager for Moon's camp, told a news conference in Seoul that DUP candidate Kong Min-bae has withdrawn his candidacy to contribute to an opposition victory in the race against Hong Joon-pyo of the Saenuri Party. (Yonhap)