Latest news with #KoreanPolitics
Bloomberg
7 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
South Korea's Lee Wins Election Following Months of Chaos
Good morning. Lee Jae-myung defeats Kim Moon-soo in South Korea's presidential election. Meta bets nuclear energy can help power its AI efforts. And Huawei's new phone is an early test for in-house operating system HarmonyOS. Listen to the day's top stories. South Korea's left-leaning maverick Lee Jae-myung won the presidential election, after Kim Moon-soo said he 'humbly' accepts defeat. The election marks a turning point for the country after months of chaos unleashed by former leader Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law debacle. The president-elect vowed to improve people's livelihoods and revive the economy. That may be tough as the country is one of the most vulnerable to Donald Trump's tariffs.
Sky News
03-06-2025
- Business
- Sky News
South Korea: Liberal opposition candidate poised to win presidential election
South Korea's main conservative candidate has conceded defeat in the country's snap election and congratulated liberal rival Lee Jae-myung who is set to become president. Kim Moon Soo, candidate of the People Power Party (PPP), said he "humbly accepts [the] people's choice" after projections showed Mr Lee was expected to win the election. Projections showed that with 70% of ballots counted, Mr Lee had won 48.53% of the vote. An exit poll from three of South Korea's broadcasters on Monday night also put the Democratic Party leader on 51.7% and Mr Kim on 39.3% Speaking at a news conference, Mr Lee said he would seek to unite the country and find a way to coexist with North Korea through communication and dialogue. It caps off a tumultuous six months for South Korea, with the country plunged into crisis after former president Yoon Suk Yeol briefly declared martial law on 3 December. 3:04 Troops had entered the National Assembly building as police and protesters clashed outside after he made the announcement, only for him to reverse the move six hours later. Mr Yoon was impeached later that month, and his dismissal was upheld in April after South Korea's constitutional court ruled the conservative leader "violated his duty as commander-in-chief by mobilising troops". 1:26 Mr Lee, a former human rights lawyer, had previously called the snap election "judgment day" against the martial law decision, and accused the PPP of condoning the attempt by not fighting harder to oust Mr Yoon. Park Chan-dae, acting leader of the Democratic Party, told South Korean broadcaster KBS that "I think people made a fiery judgment against the insurrection regime".
ABC News
03-06-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Liberal Lee Jae-myung projected to win South Korea's snap presidential election
South Korea's liberal party candidate Lee Jae-myung is projected to win the country's snap presidential election, according to projections by the country's broadcasters on Tuesday. A joint exit poll by broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS, put Mr Lee on 51.7% and his conservative rival Kim Moon-soo on 39.3%. The exit poll has in previous elections mostly been in line with the final results. A separate poll by broadcaster JTBC put Mr Lee on 50.6% and Mr Kim on 39.4%. Channel A also predicted a win by Mr Lee of similar margins. Around 78% of South Korea's 44.39 million eligible voters had cast ballots to pick the leader of Asia's fourth-largest economy, hoping to draw to a close six months of turmoil triggered by a shock martial law briefly imposed by former leader Yoon Suk Yeol. After being impeached by parliament in December, Mr Yoon was removed from office by the Constitutional Court on April 4, less than three years into his five-year term, triggering the snap election that now stands to remake South Korea's political leadership and foreign policies. Mr Lee had called the election "judgment day" against the previous Yoon administration and the conservative People Power Party, accusing them of having condoned the martial law attempt by not fighting harder to thwart it and even trying to save Yoon's presidency. The winner must tackle challenges including a society deeply scarred by divisions made more obvious since the attempt at military rule, and an export-heavy economy reeling from unpredictable protectionist moves by the United States, a major trading partner and a security ally. If the exit poll's projection is accurate, Lee should be on course to officially become president when the National Election Commission declares the winner sometime on Wednesday, immediately taking power including becoming commander-in-chief of the military. Reuters
BreakingNews.ie
11-05-2025
- Politics
- BreakingNews.ie
Party fails in bid to switch candidate for South Korean presidential election
South Korea's embattled conservative party cancelled and then reinstated the presidential candidacy of Kim Moon Soo within hours as internal turmoil escalated ahead of the June 3 election. Saturday's chaotic U-turn, after a failed attempt to replace Mr Kim with former prime minister Han Duck-soo, underscored the People Power Party's (PPP) leadership crisis following the ousting of former president Yoon Suk Yeol over his martial law imposition in December, which possibly doomed the conservatives' chances of winning another term in government. Advertisement Mr Kim, a staunch conservative and former labour minister under Mr Yoon, was named the PPP's presidential candidate on May 3 after winning 56.3% of the primary vote, defeating a reformist rival who had criticised Yoon's martial law. But the PPP's leadership, dominated by Yoon loyalists, had spent the past week desperately pressuring him to step aside and back Mr Han, the man they believed stood a stronger chance against liberal Democratic Party frontrunner Lee Jae-myung. Kim Moon Soo, right, and Han Duck-soo (Yonhap/AP) After talks between the two men failed to unify their candidacies, the PPP's emergency committee took the unprecedented step early Saturday of nullifying its primary, cancelling Mr Kim's nomination and registering Mr Han as both a party member and its new presidential candidate. The replacement required approval through an all-party vote conducted through an automated phone survey, which ultimately rejected the switch on Saturday night. Advertisement 'While we cannot disclose the figures, the vote on switching the candidate was rejected by a narrow margin,' party spokesman and lawmaker Shin Dong-wook said. Mr Kim, who had denounced the party's attempt to replace him as an 'overnight political coup', was immediately reinstated as the candidate and plans to officially register with election authorities on Sunday, according to the party. 'Now everything will return to its rightful place,' Mr Kim said in a statement. The 73-year-old was a prominent labour activist in the 1970s and '80s, but joined a conservative party in the 1990s, saying he gave up his dream of becoming a 'revolutionist' after witnessing the collapse of communist states. Advertisement Since then, he has served eight years as governor of South Korea's Gyeonggi province and completed three terms in the National Assembly. Mr Han served as acting president after Mr Yoon was impeached by the legislature in December and officially removed by the Constitutional Court in April. He resigned from office on May 2 to pursue a presidential bid, arguing his long public service career qualifies him to lead the country amid growing geopolitical uncertainty and trade challenges intensified by the policies of US President Donald Trump. Mr Han, who had called for unity after being promoted as the candidate, said in a statement he 'humbly accepts' the voice of party members. Advertisement Opinion polls have seen both men lagging well behind Mr Lee, who spearheaded the Democrats' efforts to oust Mr Yoon, ridiculed the PPP's efforts to switch candidacies, telling reporters on Thursday: 'I have heard of forced marriages but never heard of forced unity.'
South China Morning Post
10-05-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
South Korea's conservatives fails to swap presidential candidates in chaotic U-turn
South Korea's embattled conservative party cancelled then reinstated the presidential candidacy of Kim Moon-soo within hours as internal turmoil escalated ahead of the June 3 election. Advertisement Saturday's chaotic U-turn, after a failed attempt to replace Kim with former prime minister Han Duck-soo, underscored the People Power Party's leadership crisis following the ousting of former president Yoon Suk-yeol over his martial law imposition in December, which possibly doomed the conservatives' chances of winning another term in government. Kim, a staunch conservative and former labour minister under Yoon, was named the PPP's presidential candidate on May 3 after winning 56.3 per cent of the primary vote, defeating a reformist rival who had criticised Yoon's martial law. But the PPP's leadership, dominated by Yoon loyalists, had spent the past week desperately pressuring Kim to step aside and back Han, whom they believed stood a stronger chance against liberal Democratic Party front runner Lee Jae-myung. After talks between Han and Kim failed to unify their candidacies, the PPP's emergency committee took the unprecedented step early Saturday of nullifying its primary, cancelling Kim's nomination and registering Han as both a party member and its new presidential candidate. Advertisement However, the replacement required approval through an all-party vote conducted through an automated phone survey, which ultimately rejected the switch on Saturday night.
