Heavy silence fell over the People Power Party's ballot-counting situation room at its headquarters at 6 p.m. on the 3rd as the three major broadcasters released their exit poll results. As projections showed the Democratic Party of Korea holding a commanding lead in metropolitan mayoral and gubernatorial races, party leaders watched the screens with stern faces.
People Power Party leaders, including Standing Election Campaign Committee Chairman Jang Dong-hyuk and Co-Chairman Song Eon-seok, arrived one by one at the ballot-counting situation room in the basement of the central party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, ahead of the close of voting. The tense atmosphere as officials awaited the exit poll announcement turned sharply somber once the results were released.
According to the exit polls by the three broadcasters, the Democratic Party was projected to lead in 11 of the 16 metropolitan mayoral and gubernatorial races, while the People Power Party was ahead in only one. Four regions — Busan, Daegu, North Jeolla and Gangwon — were classified as toss-ups.
When the results were announced at 6 p.m. sharp, no applause or cheers came from the party officials and lawmakers in the situation room. Chairman Jang stared grimly at the TV screen and left around 6:40 p.m. without issuing a separate statement.
Co-Chairman Song also showed little reaction. Aside from asking someone to "change the channel" when a commercial came on, he held his tongue and watched the vote-counting broadcast.
The party leadership did, however, strongly raise concerns over a ballot shortage controversy that erupted in parts of Seoul earlier in the day.
Before the exit poll announcement, Song expressed dissatisfaction, saying, "Isn't this excessive? Is it acceptable to release results before voting has even ended?" He added, "Turnout was higher in previous elections, yet there were no ballot shortage issues then," and criticized, "Where did the National Election Commission spend its budget?"
Co-Chairman Chung Jum-sik also shook his head, calling it "unprecedented."
Yoon Hee-suk, head of Oh Se-hoon's campaign, voiced concern over the ballot shortage, saying, "If there are any ballots left at all, the election commission should act swiftly..."
Since exit poll results can differ from actual counts, the People Power Party appeared to be pinning its last hopes on the vote-counting trends in toss-up regions. Still, immediately after the announcement, the shock from the projected Democratic Party sweep lingered in the party's situation room.
