On June 13th Koreans will head to the polls for local elections.<br />And better late than never,... rival lawmakers managed to pass a re-districting bill on Monday... the 100 day countdown to polling day.<br />Given this is the first election to be held since President Moon Jae-in took power last year,... watchers say the June election will be a barometer of the administration's popularity.<br />Kim Min-ji reports. <br /> The National Assembly on Monday passed a long overdue redistricting bill for the June 13th local elections.<br />By law, the electoral map has to be finalized six months prior to the election -- meaning December 13th last year -- but political wrangling kept lawmakers from having the bill ready on time.<br /> The new map adds a combined 27 more positions for city and provincial councilors -- except for Jeju Special Self-Governing Province and the administrative city of Sejong -- for a total of 690 posts.<br />As for council members -- there will be 29 more posts for a nationwide total of 2,927.<br /><br /> That's more than 3,600 positions up for grabs,... not counting the key posts of mayor, governor and education superintendent in 17 cities and provinces.<br />A mini general election is also in the works... as about 10 parliamentary seats are going to be vacant -- <br /> with some lawmakers giving up their posts to run for local office plus some who have been stripped of their position.<br /><br /> "With just three months left, the priorities of the rival parties will be to field the best possible candidates in hopes of at least keeping the posts they have now -- or if they're lucky, adding new ones. On top of that, it's the first nationwide poll under the Moon Jae-in administration -- meaning the results will be a barometer of how the public assesses the young government."<br /><br /> Preliminary registration is open for candidates running for mayor, district office chief, education superintendent and local councilor.<br />Registration for county council members will start in April.<br />Once registered,... candidates can start campaigning,... open their election offices,... and start sending material to voters in their constituencies.<br />Kim Min-ji, Arirang News. <br />
