Talk of South Korea's central Chungcheong Province taking center stage in the country's politics is surfacing as U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, a native of the region, is emerging as a potential presidential contender, observers said Thursday.

The relatively politically neutral region has traditionally been perched on the political periphery while the conservative southeastern Yeongnam region and progressive southwestern Honam region have held stronger sway over South Korean politics in the past.

But Chungcheong has recently been moving toward the center of the political scene with some of its politicians garnering top posts in the government and political parties. They include presidential chief of staff Lee Won-jong, and Chung Jin-suk and Rep. Hong Moon-pyo -- the ruling Saenuri Party's floor leader and acting secretary-general, respectively.

On the back of the momentum for the rising region, Ban is now being touted as a possible odds-on favorite who can win in next year's presidential vote. 

The backing from some ruling party lawmakers loyal to Park Geun-hye -- whose support base is in the Yeongnam region -- could further brighten the prospects of Ban winning in the crucial election, political watchers said.

"The reason why keen attention is being paid to Ban is there is no clear presidential hopeful in the ruling party," Rep. Kim Tae-heum of the Saenuri Party, a native of the Chungcheong region, said, indicating that the potential for the U.N. chief to clinch his party's ticket for the presidential vote is high.

Saenuri Party lawmakers, closely affiliated with the president, have repeatedly floated the idea of Ban running in the presidential election. This has spawned speculation that Ban could gain considerable voter support from the Yeongnam region as well as the Chungcheong region.

However, region-based politics could draw a backlash from voters, some observers said, noting that it is an anachronistic concept that has distorted Korean politics and undermined national unity.

"There could be the possibility that some would take issue with the fact that a rare candidate from the Chungcheong region is sowing discord in politics," an official of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea said, declining to be identified.

Yoon Pyung-joong, a political philosophy professor at Hanshin University, said that election campaigns based on "regional sentiment" are the main culprits that have caused Korean politics to "retrogress."

Meanwhile, with Ban in the political limelight, his close confidants and associates drew renewed attention.

Given his longtime career in diplomatic circles, the cadre of his aides largely includes former and current diplomats such as former Foreign Ministers Song Min-soon and Kim Sung-hwan, and South Korea's envoy to the U.N. Oh Joon.

Members of the Chungcheong Forum, a group of prominent figures in politics, government, journalism, the judiciary and other fields, could also actively support Ban should he officially throw his hat in the ring. (Yonhap)