Trial obstacle cleared for Lee Jae-myung's presidency run; conservatives to hold key merger talks

Presidential candidates Kim Moon-soo and Han Duck-soo are scheduled to sit down on this Wednesday evening for talks on a possible merger WHILE a legal hurdle appears to have been moved aside for contender Lee Jae-myung .

Our correspondent Kim Do-yeon has the latest.

The Seoul High Court has accepted Democratic Party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung's request to delay his election law trial, removing a key legal hurdle for the campaign that could've even blocked his run.

Tuesday's decision pushes the hearing to after the June 3rd presidential election, saying it was to guarantee a fair election campaign opportunity to the presidential candidate and to eliminate controversies over fairness.

Lee welcomed the news while he was on his "listening tour," part of his preliminary campaign tour in Jeollabuk-do Province.

"This is a critical time when the people are practically exercising their sovereignty, so it's extremely important to ensure nothing hinders that process. I believe the court made a rightful and necessary decision in line with the spirit of the Constitution."

As for his "listening tour," he's set to wrap up the day in Chungcheongnam-do Province.

Meanwhile, the People Power Party presidential candidate Kim Moon-soo and independent candidate Han Duck-soo will meet one-on-one at 6 PM on Wednesday to discuss a possible merger.

This comes as Kim abruptly halted his campaign on Tuesday after tensions escalated between him and the PPP leadership, as Kim wants to take time and lead the merger process while the PPP leadership says there's no time with the official candidate registration coming up in less than a week.

Kim has also accused the party leaders of trying to oust him as their presidential nominee.

"If this was the plan all along, I don't understand why we held three rounds of primaries. So as of now, I'm suspending all my activities as the party's candidate. I'll be heading back to Seoul to seriously address the pressing issues that remain."

Kim has kept himself away from the public since the announcement and avoided the PPP leadership's efforts to meet him in person.

His camp also called for the court to step in as the PPP has announced a possible convention in the next few days, signaling that there could be another candidacy event to make Han Duck-soo the official candidate.

As for the ex-PM, Han says a merger has been ordered by the citizens and it must happen.

This came as he faced the foreign media on Wednesday, as he also said he will yield all decisions on the possible merger with the PPP.

Kim Do-yeon, Arirang News.