Election Too Close To Call With Large Numbers Undecided

Latest polling ahead of the 9 March presidential election shows the contest as too close to call, with a large number of undecided voters meaning either conservative People Power Party nominee Yoon Seok-youl or liberal Democratic Party of Korea candidate Lee Jae-myung could emerge as victors.

• Ipsos Korea: Preferred candidate for March 2022 presidential election: Yoon Seok-youl (PPP, Conservative): 39.4% (+1.9), Lee Jae-myung (DPK, Liberal): 36.8% (-1). +/- vs. 23-24 December 2021. Fieldwork: 20-22 January 2022. Sample size: 1,000
• Gallup Korea poll: Preferred candidate for March 2022 presidential election: Lee Jae-myung (DPK, Liberal): 35% (+1), Yoon Seok-youl (PPP, Conservative): 35% (+2). +/- vs. 18-20 January 2022. Fieldwork: 25-27 January 2022. Sample size: 1,000
• With combined support for both candidates coming in around 70-80%, there is a sizeable section of voters still to make up their minds. The Yoon campaign has been hit in the past few days after recorded comments from the candidates wife emerged where she stated that she would seek to jail reporters critical of her husband if he wins the election.
• The election will be closely watched in both Washington, D.C. and Beijing, with the two candidates offering starkly different stances on major foreign policy issues such as North Korea, security in northeast Asia, and potential South Korean membership of the 'Quad' alliance alongside the US, India, Japan, and Australia. Yoon has put forward a much more hawkish vision of relations with regional adversaries such as China and North Korea, while Lee has favoured a more cooperative view of interactions with both Beijing and Pyongyang.