People Power Party hints at ending talks with minor party's Lee on candidacy merger
The People Power Party on Wednesday hinted at ending its efforts to merge candidacies with minor New Reform Party candidate Lee Jun-seok through negotiations, saying the phase of such talks seems to be over.
PPP presidential candidate Kim Moon-soo has tried to persuade the NRP's Lee to field a single candidate to better challenge Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung, the campaign's front-runner.
However, the NRP's Lee has declared he would not drop his candidacy until Election Day and the two-day early voting period for the June 3 vote will begin on Thursday.
"The candidacy unification issue no longer seems to be something that can be resolved by mechanically setting a deadline," PPP spokesperson Shin Dong-wook told reporters.
"The stage where we can resolve this through negotiations and contact has already passed," Shin said, while appealing to the NRP candidate to consider the broader national interest.
A poll by Realmeter released earlier in the day showed the DP's Lee leading with 49.2 percent -- more than the combined support for Kim at 36.8 percent and Lee Jun-seok at 10.3 percent.
Despite mounting pressure from the PPP, Lee Jun-seok has remained firm in his decision to continue his campaign, effectively setting a three-way race that could divide conservative votes.
Conservatives are enduring a challenging election, which was triggered by former President Yoon Suk Yeol's ouster from office over his botched martial law declaration in December. (Yonhap)
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