Opposition Party's Debate Battle Starts Tomorrow... Will the Convention Effect Work?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] As the 'two-track' primary election to select the unified opposition candidate for the April 7 by-elections begins this week, both the People Power Party and the Third Zone will start debate face-offs from the 15th, right after the Lunar New Year holiday. With the official race kicking off, attention is focused on whether the opposition can achieve the originally intended convention effect (a rise in approval ratings following a political event).

The People Power Party, which launched the main primary last week with a joint press conference called 'Media Day,' will hold one-on-one candidate debates in Seoul on the 16th, 19th, and 23rd, and in Busan on the 15th, 18th, and 22nd. The format involves two teams per day in each region, totaling six debates. They have adopted a 'three no's' (no dress code, no formality, no debate materials) standing debate style.

In the Third Zone, where Ahn Cheol-soo of the People’s Party and independent candidate Geum Tae-seop, both running for Seoul mayor, will face off, the first debate is also scheduled for the 15th. Another debate is planned for the 25th. They have set the debate topics as 'Evaluation and alternatives of the Moon Jae-in administration’s four years' and 'Vision and policies for Seoul.' Their schedule will proceed almost simultaneously with that of the People Power Party.

The Third Zone will conduct public opinion polls around the 27th to 28th and announce the results on the 1st of next month. The People Power Party plans to select its candidate by the 4th of next month.

After the 4th of next month, the main game to unify the final candidate will begin. Prior to this, intense strategic negotiations over the unification rules between the People Power Party candidate and the Third Zone candidate are expected to continue.

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