With Wednesday’s by-election for the Gangseo-gu District chief under way, the ruling and opposition parties have encouraged voting while campaigning for their respective candidates.

Ruling People Power Party(PPP) chief spokesperson Yoo Sang-bum called on voters to elect a “real worker” in candidate Kim Tae-woo who will work for the people of Gangseo instead of an “errand boy for the opposition party leader.”

Meanwhile, Democratic Party floor leader Hong Ik-pyo called on voters to support the abilities and qualifications of candidate Jin Kyo-hoon while asking local residents to unite against the arrogance of the Yoon Suk Yeol administration.

The by-election became necessary after the current PPP candidate was removed from the same post in May due to a suspended prison sentence.

Despite being responsible for the vacancy, however, the ruling party named him as its candidate after his right to run in the by-election was reinstated with a special presidential pardon in August.

Jin, on the other hand, is a former deputy chief of the national police, who is Kim’s biggest challenger among the five other candidates running in the by-elections.