Former North Korean Affairs minister Chung Dong-young has been elected chairman of South Korea's ruling Uri Party. He now has the upper hand for becoming the party's candidate in next year's presidential elections.
Chung, who served as the government's point man on North Korea until December, received 4,450 votes, followed by his rival, former Health Minister Kim Geun-tae, with 3,847 votes at the party's annual convention. Uri members also elected four other officials to serve the party's top decision-making body.
Chung, 53, will guide the party through the local elections in May. This will serve as a key indicator of Chung’s chances in the December 2007 elections to succeed President Roh Moo-hyun, whose five-year term expires in February 2008.