Lee Jae Myung's path to S. Korea's presidency began on factory floor
SEOUL (Kyodo) -- South Korea's new President Lee Jae Myung was at the forefront of protests against the imposition of martial law by then leader Yoon Suk Yeol in December as well as the subsequent clashes between Yoon and opposition parties over his impeachment.
Lee is a self-made politician and human rights lawyer who began his career working in a factory after graduating from elementary school.
He grew up in poverty in a village in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province. After moving to Seongnam, a city neighboring Seoul, he worked during the day and studied at night to pass the high school equivalency exam. He went on to study law at Chung-Ang University in the capital and passed the bar exam in 1986.
As a human rights lawyer and civil activist, he led a campaign to establish a public medical institution in Seongnam, and the failure of the efforts motivated him to enter politics. He began his political career in 2010 when he was elected mayor of the city.
His first bid for the presidency in 2017 ended in defeat when he lost the Democratic Party primary to Moon Jae In, who went on to become the party's candidate.
After serving two consecutive terms as Seongnam mayor, Lee was elected governor of Gyeonggi Province in 2018. His swift response to the COVID-19 pandemic helped him secure the liberal party's nomination for the March 2022 presidential election, which was won by Yoon.
Lee then entered parliament, winning a by-election as a DP candidate. After he became party leader in August 2022, the DP and its affiliate secured a landslide victory in the 2024 general election.
He resigned as party leader in April to run in the presidential election, as party rules require members seeking to enter the primary to step down from party posts.
His presidential bid was launched under the shadow of charges of violating election law over allegedly false statements made in 2021. However, in May, the Seoul High Court postponed the first retrial hearing after the Supreme Court overturned his acquittal and remanded the case.
In January 2024, Lee was stabbed by a knife-wielding man while speaking to reporters after touring the construction site of a new airport on Gadeok Island in Busan. The attacker was arrested at the scene, and Lee was taken to the hospital, where he recovered.
The Supreme Court sentenced his assailant to 15 years in prison.
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