(LEAD) Exit poll shows ruling party failing to win parliamentary majority

(ATTN: UPDATES with details of joint exit poll)

SEOUL, April 13 (Yonhap) -- South Korea’s ruling Saenuri Party is slightly ahead of its main opposition rival in Wednesday's tightly contested parliamentary elections, though it may not win a parliamentary majority, an exit poll said.

An exit poll by South Korea's public broadcaster KBS predicted that the ruling Saenuri Party could win between 121-143 while the main opposition Minjoo Party could secure between 101-123 seats out of the total 300 seats up for grabs.

KBS conducted the joint exit poll with two other broadcasters MBC and SBS, though they have different predictions on the results of the elections as they use different tools.

The poll released by MBC showed the ruling party winning between 118-136 seats against the Minjoo Party's 107-128 seats.

An SBS poll forecast the ruling party winning between 123-147 seats and the Minjoo Party securing 97-120 seats.

Independent candidates are expected to win between 8-20 seats, according to the poll released by the three broadcasters.
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