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South Korean presidential race is a liberal-free zone
SEOUL — Fortune tellers are taken seriously in South Korea. But in a country renowned for the volatility of its politics, those who claim clairvoyance in matters of money and love are being cautious about predicting the winner of this year's presidential election.

A Gallup Korea poll released Monday said the former Seoul mayor, front-runner Lee Myung-bak, had the backing of half of the decided voters; other polls have his support even higher. Polls show that Lee's closest challenger is Park Geun-hye, the daughter of a former president and also a member of the conservative Grand National Party, or GNP.

Either way, it is not difficult to predict that the liberal left's decade-long grip on the presidency will end this year. The governing Uri Party is a shambles, crippled by factional fights and wounded by disillusionment with President Roh Moo-hyun, whose approval ratings have dipped below 10% in some polls.
Posted by: Steve White 2007-01-25
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=178665