On May 28, one day before early voting for the Ulsan mayoral election, the Democratic Party and the Progressive Party unified their candidate selection, naming Kim Sang-wook as their joint candidate.
At a joint press conference held around 5:50 p.m. in front of the Ulsan Election Commission, Kim Sang-wook and Kim Jong-hoon announced the results of a public opinion poll conducted to determine the unified candidate.
Throughout the day, both candidates used polling firms of their choice to conduct surveys utilizing a secure phone number system, resulting in Kim Sang-wook being selected as the unified candidate for both parties.
Kim Jong-hoon, who lost in the selection process, accepted the results and submitted his resignation as a candidate to the Ulsan Election Commission just before the announcement.
Kim Sang-wook expressed his gratitude, stating, "I will carry the hopes and aspirations of our Progressive Party comrades in my heart and work to create a citizen-led Ulsan and true democracy. I extend my respect and thanks to Kim Jong-hoon for making a difficult choice and showing courage."
The initial unification poll was conducted from May 23 to 24. However, on the morning of May 24, Kim Sang-wook's camp raised concerns about the omission of a clause to prevent reverse selection, leading to the suspension of the selection process. Subsequently, Kim Sang-wook's camp proposed a re-election contingent upon implementing safeguards against organized interference from specific factions, which Kim Jong-hoon accepted on May 27, allowing the re-election to proceed.
Meanwhile, a survey commissioned by Gyeongsang Ilbo and Ulsan MBC, conducted by Hankyung Research from May 25 to 26 among 1,102 Ulsan voters, showed Kim Sang-wook with 35.8%, Kim Du-gyeom of the People Power Party with 35.5%, and Kim Jong-hoon with 19.0%. In a poll based on the premise of Kim Sang-wook's unification, he garnered 43.6%, while Kim Du-gyeom received 36.9%.
The survey utilized random digit dialing (RDD) for 17.2% of responses and automated response systems (ARS) for 82.8%, with a response rate of 4.3% and a margin of error of ±3.0 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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