On the 2nd, a day before the June 3 local elections, the leadership of both parties launched a final all-out push. The Democratic Party of Korea leadership focused its efforts on Seoul, Gangwon, Yongin and North Jeolla, while the People Power Party leadership concentrated on South Chungcheong and Busan–South Gyeongsang. All are places showing razor-thin races so tight it is hard to call an advantage even at the end.
On this day, Democratic Party leader Jung Chung-rae will visit Jeongseon and Yeongwol in Gangwon. He is set to campaign for Jeongseon County chief candidate Choi Seung-jun and Gangwon governor candidate Woo Sang-ho. In the afternoon, he will go to Yongin, Gyeonggi, to attend campaign events for Gyeonggi governor candidate Choo Mi-ae and Yongin mayor candidate Hyun Geun-taek, then in the evening meet Seoul mayor candidate Chong Won-o and citizens at Cheonggye Plaza in Seoul.
Gangwon, Yongin and Seoul, which Jung will visit, are all classified as razor-thin battlegrounds. Unlike the Gyeonggi governor race, where the Democratic Party holds a comfortable lead in polls, the Yongin mayoral race is a dead heat between the Democratic Party of Korea and People Power Party candidates. The same goes for Gangwon and Seoul.
A Democratic Party official said, "The Gangwon schedule was set at the request of candidate Woo Sang-ho," adding, "In particular, the visit to Yeongwol, Gangwon, was requested directly by Woo to leader Jung."
Floor leader Han Byung-do plans to crisscross North Jeolla all day with North Jeolla governor candidate Lee Won-taek. He will spend the entire day accompanying Lee's campaign stops in Iksan, Jeonju and Wanju. The North Jeolla governor race is also classified as a razor-thin contest. In particular, this is a region where an independent has never won, and with the race framed as "Kim Kwan-young versus Jung Chung-rae," if Lee Won-taek loses, the blow will inevitably extend beyond a single metropolitan mayoralty to the entire leadership under Jung Chung-rae.
A political source said, "If the Democratic Party loses in North Jeolla, even victories in Seoul and Busan would still trigger calls for Jung Chung-rae to step down," adding, "The fact that floor leader Han is spending the entire final campaign day in North Jeolla is in the same vein."
People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyuk will concentrate on South Chungcheong all day. After he released an appeal to the public at the central party headquarters in Yeouido on Tuesday morning, he went straight to Cheongyang, South Chungcheong. It is to support the by-election for the National Assembly seat in Gongju–Buyeo–Cheongyang and the local mayoral races in the area. Gongju–Buyeo–Cheongyang is the constituency of Democratic Party candidate Park Soo-hyun for South Chungcheong governor, but in the by-election the Democratic Party and People Power Party are locked in a dead heat.
After Cheongyang, Jang will swing through Gongju, Dangjin and Hwaseong, then hold a final rally on Tuesday evening in front of the Shinsegae Department Store in Cheonan. This is likewise to bolster the tight South Chungcheong governor race. He will then head to Seoul and, until midnight when the campaign period ends, tour Jongno and the Hongdae area to appeal for support.
Floor leader Song Eon-seog will stop by Daegu, then head to Busan and South Gyeongsang. He will join a campaign event supporting Park Min-sik, the People Power Party candidate for the National Assembly in Busan Buk-gap, then attend back-to-back finale rallies for Jinju mayor candidate Han Kyung-ho and South Gyeongsang governor candidate Park Wan-su.
Jinju is a People Power Party stronghold, but in this local election the party is struggling. Former mayor Cho Gyu-il, who was cut in the primary, sparked a whirlwind by running as an independent. While it may not carry the same political weight as the North Jeolla governor race, if the party's nominated candidate loses, it would inevitably be a loss of face for the People Power Party leadership.
A People Power Party official explained, "We view South Gyeongsang and Busan as razor-thin, and the reason the party leadership is going there for the final day of campaigning is to pull in even one more vote."