▲ People cast ballots in local elections at a polling station in Chungju, around 100 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on June 3, 2026. (Yonhap)

(LEAD) local elections-exit poll

(LEAD) Ruling DP projected to win at least 10 of 16 key local election races: exit polls

(ATTN: RECASTS headline, lead; UPDATES throughout with exit polls)

SEOUL, June 3 (Yonhap) -- The ruling Democratic Party (DP) was projected to win at least 10 of the 16 key races in Wednesday's local elections, exit polls by major broadcasters showed.

The DP was projected to win 10 of the metropolitan mayoral and gubernatorial posts, according to a JTBC exit poll, while a separate exit poll by KBS, MBC and SBS showed the DP securing 11 key races.

Both polls showed the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) expected to secure just one post.

Four to five races were too close to call, according to the polls.

At stake in this year's local elections were 16 mayoral and gubernatorial posts, and 16 education superintendent seats, along with 227 heads of local governments and some 4,000 members of local councils.

Among the key battlegrounds, Chong Won-o of the DP was projected to win the Seoul mayoral race with 53.5 percent of the vote against incumbent Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon of the PPP with 42.9 percent, according to the JTBC exit poll.

In the southeastern city of Busan, DP candidate Jeon Jae-soo was expected to win with 53.9 percent against the PPP's Park Heong-joon, the JTBC poll showed.

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