Lee Jaemyung vs Kim Moonsu in Tight Early Vote Count... Kim 46.6% vs Lee 45.3%

In the early stages of vote counting, Lee Jaemyung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, and Kim Moonsu, the People Power Party candidate, are locked in a close race. With 6.41% of the votes counted, candidate Kim Moonsu holds a slight lead over candidate Lee Jaemyung.

As of 10:00 p.m. on June 3, according to the National Election Commission, candidate Kim Moonsu had received 1,044,983 votes (46.60%), while candidate Lee Jaemyung had secured 1,015,968 votes (45.31%). Candidate Lee Joonseok of the Reform New Party followed with 158,258 votes (7.05%), and candidate Kwon Youngguk of the Democratic Labor Party received 20,224 votes (0.90%).

On the afternoon of the 3rd, the 21st presidential election day, election commission officials are conducting vote counting at the Seogwipo City Election Commission counting center set up in the Gongcheonpo Training Center Multipurpose Gymnasium in Namwon-eup, Seogwipo City, Jeju. Photo by Yonhap News

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By region, candidate Kim Moonsu showed overwhelming dominance in North Gyeongsang with 66.37%, and maintained strong support in Daegu (72.43%) and Busan (54.52%), all within the Yeongnam region. Candidate Lee Jaemyung recorded high approval ratings in the Honam region, including North Jeolla (83.61%), South Jeolla (87.93%), and Gwangju (79.38%).

In Gyeonggi Province, candidate Kim Moonsu led candidate Lee Jaemyung by 4.33 percentage points, with 47.38% to 43.05%. In Seoul, candidate Kim Moonsu holds a significant lead, with 54.27% compared to candidate Lee Jaemyung's 35.25%.

In the Chungcheong region, candidate Lee Jaemyung leads in South Chungcheong with 52.88%, ahead of candidate Kim Moonsu (40.93%) by 11.95 percentage points. However, in North Chungcheong, candidate Lee Jaemyung holds a narrow lead with 48.30% over candidate Kim Moonsu's 45.31%.

However, as only some regions have begun counting, these early-stage results may differ from the final outcome. According to exit polls conducted by the three major terrestrial broadcasters?KBS, MBC, and SBS?candidate Lee Jaemyung is projected to receive 51.7%, leading candidate Kim Moonsu (39.3%) by a margin of 12.4 percentage points.

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