Latest news with #Jae-myung
Saudi Gazette
4 days ago
- Business
- Saudi Gazette
Liberal Lee Jae-myung wins South Korea's presidential election ending months of political turmoil
SEOUL — South Korea's liberal opposition candidate Lee Jae-myung was elected president early on Wednesday in a victory that would cap months of political turmoil triggered by the stunning but brief imposition of martial law by now-ousted conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol. With over 99% of votes counted, Jae-myung obtained 49.3% of the votes cast in Tuesday's early election, while main conservative contender Kim Moon Soo trailed with 41.3%. Nearly 80% of the country's 44.4 million eligible voters cast ballots, according to an interim tally. That's one of the highest turnouts for a presidential election in South Korea, reflecting public eagerness to move past the political turmoil. Preelection surveys have long suggested Lee appeared headed for an easy win, riding on deep public frustration over the conservatives in the wake of Yoon's martial law debacle. Even before Lee's win was formally declared, Kim conceded, telling journalists that he 'humbly accepts the people's choice,' and congratulated Lee. Lee Jae-myung delivered a speech to his supporters in the capital, Seoul, after exit polls projected his victory. "The first duty you have entrusted me with, I will overcome the rebellion (referring to former President Yoon declaring martial law) and I will make sure there is no more military coup d'état, in which the power entrusted by the people would never be used to intimidate people,' said Jae-myung. Lee, 60, will be taking office for a five-year term. The president-elect rose from childhood poverty to become South Korea's leading liberal politician. His campaign saw him pledge to fight against poverty and corruption. It's not immediately clear what Jae-myung's election would mean for Seoul's foreign policy. The new leader has previously been accused by critics of tilting towards China and North Korea, and distancing from the US and Japan. The president-elect has however stressed that South Korea's alliance with the United States will continue to be the foundation of foreign policy. The most formidable external challenges facing Jae-myung are US President Donald Trump's tariff policy and Pyongyang's advancing nuclear program. However, experts have previously indicated that regardless of who assumes the presidency, securing major progress in favour of Seoul on these matters remains unlikely. He's vowed to pursue pragmatic diplomacy in his foreign policy approach. He's promised to develop the alliance with the US and solidify a trilateral Seoul-Washington-Tokyo alliance – a stance that isn't much different from the position held by South Korea's conservatives. Jae-myung also said that he'll work on pursuing better ties with North Korea, but acknowledged that it would be 'very difficult' to hold a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un anytime soon, signaling that there likely won't be any drastic steps taken to improve ties with their neighbors on the Korean peninsula. Lee Jae-myung, who held the position of governor of Gyeonggi province and mayor of Seongnam city, has been a contentious figure in the political arena for many years. As a former child laborer, known for his inspirational 'rags-to-riches' story, he gained prominence by sharply criticizing the conservative establishment of the nation and advocating for a more proactive South Korea in its foreign policy. This rhetoric has shaped his reputation as a reformer capable of implementing significant changes to address the country's deeply-rooted economic disparities and corruption. His critics view him as a dangerous populist who relies on political division and backpedals on promises too easily. — Euronews
Euronews
5 days ago
- Business
- Euronews
Opposition Lee Jae-myung wins South Korea's presidential election
South Korea's liberal opposition candidate Lee Jae-myung was elected president early on Wednesday in a victory that would cap months of political turmoil triggered by the stunning but brief imposition of martial law by now-ousted conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol. With over 99% of votes counted, Jae-myung obtained 49.3% of the votes cast in Tuesday's early election, while main conservative contender Kim Moon Soo trailed with 41.3%. Nearly 80% of the country's 44.4 million eligible voters cast ballots, according to an interim tally. That's one of the highest turnouts for a presidential election in South Korea, reflecting public eagerness to move past the political turmoil. Preelection surveys have long suggested Lee appeared headed for an easy win, riding on deep public frustration over the conservatives in the wake of Yoon's martial law debacle. Even before Lee's win was formally declared, Kim conceded, telling journalists that he 'humbly accepts the people's choice,' and congratulated Lee. Lee Jae-myung delivered a speech to his supporters in the capital, Seoul, after exit polls projected his victory. "The first duty you have entrusted me with, I will overcome the rebellion (referring to former President Yoon declaring martial law) and I will make sure there is no more military coup d'état, in which the power entrusted by the people would never be used to intimidate people,' said Jae-myung. Lee, 60, will be taking office for a five-year term. The president-elect rose from childhood poverty to become South Korea's leading liberal politician. His campaign saw him pledge to fight against poverty and corruption. It's not immediately clear what Jae-myung's election would mean for Seoul's foreign policy. The new leader has previously been accused by critics of tilting towards China and North Korea, and distancing from the US and Japan. The president-elect has however stressed that South Korea's alliance with the United States will continue to be the foundation of foreign policy. The most formidable external challenges facing Jae-myung are US President Donald Trump's tariff policy and Pyongyang's advancing nuclear programme. However, experts have previously indicated that regardless of who assumes the presidency, securing major progress in favour of Seoul on these matters remains unlikely. He's vowed to pursue pragmatic diplomacy in his foreign policy approach. He's promised to develop the alliance with the US and solidify a trilateral Seoul-Washington-Tokyo alliance – a stance that isn't much different from the position held by South Korea's conservatives. Jae-myung also said that he'll work on pursuing better ties with North Korea, but acknowledged that it would be 'very difficult' to hold a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un anytime soon, signalling that there likely won't be any drastic steps taken to improve ties with their neighbours on the Korean peninsula. Lee Jae-myung, who held the position of governor of Gyeonggi province and mayor of Seongnam city, has been a contentious figure in the political arena for many years. As a former child labourer, known for his inspirational 'rags-to-riches' story, he gained prominence by sharply criticising the conservative establishment of the nation and advocating for a more proactive South Korea in its foreign policy. This rhetoric has shaped his reputation as a reformer capable of implementing significant changes to address the country's deeply-rooted economic disparities and corruption. His critics view him as a dangerous populist who relies on political division and backpedals on promises too easily.
The Star
27-05-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Opposition chief takes the lead
Their choice: Jae-myung's supporters attending an election campaign event in Suwon, Gyeonggi province. — AFP A NEW Gallup poll indicates that South Korean opposition leader Lee Jae-myung is the clear frontrunner to become the country's next president, with less than a week to go until the elections. South Koreans go to the polls on June 3, capping months of political turmoil triggered by ex-leader Yoon Suk-yeol's ill-fated effort to suspend civilian rule in December. The Gallup poll released yesterday put Democratic Party leader Jae-myung as the clear frontrunner, with 49% of the respondents stating they saw him as the best candidate. Trailing behind is conservative former labour minister Kim Moon-soo of the ruling People Power Party at 35%. In third place is Lee Jun-seok of the Reform Party – running a campaign targeting South Korean youth – with 11%. The poll, conducted by Gallup Korea over the phone, surveyed 1,004 respondents over the weekend, with a stated margin of error of 3.1 percentage points. The poll suggested the Democratic Party leader would win handily in almost all of the country, securing the most populous regions of capital Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi. Third place Jun-seok has faced growing pressure from conservatives to abandon his presidential bid to stop left-leaning Jae-myung from winning. But the 40-year-old has remained firm, declaring that his name will be 'clearly visible' on the ballot on election day. Around 5% of those polled said they had no preference or that they did not know who would be the best candidate. The survey is one of the last to be released before next week's vote, with further polls in the run-up banned. Conservative candidate Kim shot to public attention in the aftermath of Yoon's martial law debacle, when he declined to bow in apology to the public for failing to prevent the suspension of civilian rule. After trailing behind Jae-myung for weeks, he is slowly catching up. A poll by Next Research released on Monday suggested the gap between the two candidates had narrowed to just nine percentage points nationwide, and in Seoul to a mere 3.2 points. Jae-myung lost the 2022 presidential elections to Yoon by the smallest margin of any vote in the country's history. Yesterday's poll indicated Jae-myung would win even if he faced a unified conservative candidate. And Jun-seok at a press conference yesterday vowed there would be 'no candidate merger' with 'those responsible for the emergency martial law'. 'I will fight to the end and win,' he said. Heo Jin-jae, research director at Gallup Korea, said the fact that the election was now a 'three way race' – with a third candidate polling in double digits – was noteworthy. But, he added, 'even if Kim Moon-soo and Lee Jun-seok successfully unified their candidacy, I believe it will not be easy for them to win.' — AFP
