South Korean voters headed to polling stations Wednesday for the crucial parliamentary elections that will shape the legislative landscape for the next four years and gauge public sentiment ahead of next year's presidential race.

    The quadrennial polls are to elect a new 300-member National Assembly and take on extra significance as the results will affect how President Park Geun-hye wraps up her remaining term in office, as well as set the tone for who will succeed her, according to (Yonhap) news agency.

    The National Assembly will be comprised of 253 directly contested seats and 47 proportional representation seats to be allocated to parties according to the total number of votes they receive. Each voter is asked to cast two ballots: one for a candidate and the other for a party. Voting opened at 6 a.m. (local time) and will close 12 hours later.

Source: QNA