Exit polls tallied by the MBC and SBS networks as voting ended at 09: 00 GMT showed the conservative opposition Grand National Party (GNP) captured 11 seats and the governing Millennium Democratic Party (MDP) secured the other two.

The results of the by-elections, a litmus test of sentiment ahead of a December presidential contest, give the GNP a majority 139 seats in the 273-member National Assembly. The next general parliamentary election is slated for April 2004.

Yesterday's turnout was expected to set a record low because the contest came at the height of the summer holidays and was marred by bitter infighting, as parties fight for position before the December 19 presidential election which will choose Kim's successor.

Kim, 77, cannot run in the December election because the constitution limits the president to a single five-year term.

The former dissident has been buoyed by the revival of the inter-Korean rapprochement for which he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000, with North-South ministerial talks slated for next week.

But support at home has been hurt by influence-peddling scandals, for which two of his three sons are on trial. Kim has apologized for his sons' problems and quit the MDP, a party he founded years ago.

The scandals embroiling Kim's sons and aides contributed to a GNP landslide in June 13 elections for city mayors and provincial governors.

The centre-right GNP wants policy on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to focus on reducing security threats. The GNP also vows to lift curbs on big business. The centre-left MDP has championed broad engagement and aid for Pyongyang and espouses income redistribution policies.

The ruling camp's defeat came just over a week after the National Assembly dealt Kim a setback by refusing to approve his nomination of Chang Sang as the ROK's first female prime minister.

The GNP led a parliamentary veto of Chang, a 62-year-old theologian, over an inaccurate resume and a son whose US citizenship enabled him to avoid ROK military service. Kim was expected to nominate a new premier as early as today.

The exit polls appeared to confirm what analyst had predicted: a landslide victory for the opposition, low turnout and results that mirror strong regional rivalries between the ROK's southwestern and southeastern provinces.

Seats that were contested include seven in Seoul and the populous capital region, three in the GNP stronghold of Kyongsan in the southeastern part of the country, two in the MDP's southwestern power base of Cholla and one on the island province of Cheju.

The final vote counts are due by 15: 00 GMT, electoral officials said.

(China Daily August 9, 2002)