'Gunsan Candidacy' Kim Eui-gyeom Leads Local Poll... Democratic Party Weighs Eligibility of Candidate Kim Eui-gyeom

Democratic Party Candidate Suitability Poll: Kim Eui-gyeom 44.4%, Shin Young-dae 35.2%
General Election Hypothetical Matchup: Kim Eui-gyeom 46.7%, Kim Kwan-young 21.7%

Former Blue House Spokesperson Kim Eui-gyeom. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Former Blue House spokesperson Kim Euigyeom, who declared his candidacy for Gunsan in the April general election, has ranked first in both the party’s candidate suitability survey and the virtual election matchups. However, the Democratic Party has yet to reach a conclusion on whether Kim is qualified as a candidate amid controversies over real estate speculation.

According to a survey conducted by polling specialist firm Jowon C&I from the 15th to the 17th among men and women aged 19 and older residing in the Gunsan electoral district of Jeonbuk, commissioned by News1 Jeonbuk Reporting Headquarters, Kim led the Democratic Party candidate suitability with 44.4%, ahead of former Blue House administrative officer Shin Youngdae at 35.2%.

In a virtual matchup against Kim Gwan-young, a re-elected Bareunmirae Party lawmaker from Gunsan, former spokesperson Kim showed a strong lead with 46.7% to 21.7%.

Kim received high support across all areas: ΔDistrict 1 42.2%, ΔDistrict 2 46.4%, ΔDistrict 3 41.6%, and ΔDistrict 4 55.1%.

By age group, he garnered support of Δ44.0% among 19?29-year-olds, Δ45.0% among 30?39-year-olds, Δ54.1% among 40?49-year-olds, Δ48.0% among 50?59-year-olds, and Δ43.2% among those aged 60 and above. By gender, support was Δ47.8% from males and Δ45.7% from females.

Former Blue House spokesperson Kim Eui-gyeom is holding a press conference for his candidacy at Gunsan City Hall, Jeonbuk, on the 19th of last month. Photo by Yonhap News

However, the Democratic Party has not yet reached a decision on Kim’s eligibility as a preliminary candidate for the April 15 general election.

The Democratic Party’s Candidate Verification Committee announced on the afternoon of the 20th at a plenary meeting held at the Yeouido central party office that it would continue to review Kim and refer the case to the on-site investigation subcommittee.

At a plenary meeting on the 14th, the committee also reviewed Kim’s eligibility but kept him under continued review, citing the need for submission of explanatory materials related to the real estate controversy.

Earlier, Kim resigned from his spokesperson position amid controversy over his purchase of a commercial-residential building in the redevelopment zone of Heukseok-dong in March last year. Kim stated that he would donate all profits from the sale of the commercial-residential building.

This survey was conducted by Jowon C&I, a polling specialist firm, using ARS polling via landline phones (2%) and virtual mobile phone numbers provided by telecom companies (98%) over three days from January 15 to 17, 2020, targeting men and women aged 19 and older residing in the Gunsan electoral district of Jeollabuk-do, commissioned by News1 Jeonbuk Reporting Headquarters.

Weights (rim weights) were applied according to gender, age, and regional population proportions based on resident registration population statistics announced by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety at the end of December last year.

The sample size was 500 respondents out of 11,653 total calls, with a response rate of 4.3%. The sampling error is ±4.4 percentage points at a 95% confidence level. Additional details can be found at the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission. Candidates from the National Revolutionary Dividend Party and some independent candidates registered as preliminary candidates with the election commission were excluded from the survey based on evaluations of their local activities.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.