Latest news with #Lee
The Star
31 minutes ago
- Politics
- The Star
South Koreans turn out in record numbers for early voting in presidential election
A woman casts her early vote for the upcoming presidential election at a polling station in Seoul, South Korea, May 29, 2025. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji SEOUL (Reuters) -South Koreans began turning out in record numbers for early voting on Thursday in the country's snap presidential polls set to take place next week, election commission data showed, as both of the leading candidates cast their ballots. The June 3 election comes after months of political turmoil and a power vacuum following the botched attempt by former leader Yoon Suk Yeol to impose martial law. The liberal Democratic Party's candidate Lee Jae-myung, the frontrunner in the polls before a blackout period banning opinion polls began on Wednesday, cast his ballot in Seoul. "In order to overcome the current crisis... and start again as a Korea of recovery and growth, please vote," Lee said after casting his ballot at a university district in the city. His comment came after the Bank of Korea cut interest rates on Thursday and slashed its 2025 growth forecast for Asia's fourth-largest economy to 0.8% from 1.5% previously. On Wednesday, Lee pledged to establish a new Ministry of Climate and Energy to "respond to the climate crisis", and expand and reorganise the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family to promote equal rights and deal with any reverse discrimination. Some 3,107,164 people, or 7.00% of total eligible voters, had voted as of around 11 a.m. (0200 GMT), according to National Election Commission data, the highest turnout for the equivalent period in a presidential poll and compared with 5.38% in the 2022 vote. South Korea has 44.39 million eligible voters and early voting is allowed on Thursday and Friday. The top three candidates based on the last published Gallup Korea poll before the blackout period put Lee at 49% public support, followed by his main conservative rival Kim Moon-soo of the People Power Party with 35% and another conservative candidate, the New Reform Party's Lee Jun-seok, on 11%. Kim and Lee Jun-seok also voted on Thursday. Kim had eroded what was a more than 20 percentage point gap with Lee Jae-myung at the start of the campaign on May 12, but has failed to convince Lee Jun-seok to drop out and back him to improve his chances. (Reporting by Joyce Lee; Editing by Ed Davies and Saad Sayeed)
New Straits Times
35 minutes ago
- Politics
- New Straits Times
South Koreans begin early voting in presidential poll
SEOUL: Early voting in South Korea's presidential elections kicked off on Thursday, with both main candidates set to cast ballots in a poll triggered by ex-leader Yoon Suk Yeol's ill-fated effort to suspend civilian rule last year. All major polls have placed liberal Lee Jae-myung as the clear frontrunner in the presidential race, with a recent Gallup survey showing 49 per cent of respondents viewed him as the best candidate. Trailing behind him is conservative ex-labour minister Kim Moon-soo of the ruling People Power Party – Yoon's former party – at 35 per cent. While election day is set for June 3, those who want to vote early can do so on Thursday and Friday – part of an initiative introduce in 2013 to help those unable to cast ballots on polling day or planning to travel. South Koreans have in recent years turned out in larger and larger numbers for early voting, with 37 per cent casting their ballots ahead of polling day in the 2022 presidential election. Voting began at 6am (2100 GMT Wednesday) for twelve hours, taking place again on Friday. According to the National Election Commission, as of 9am (0000 GMT) the early voting turnout rate was 3.55 per cent, the highest record yet for that time in South Korean election history. Lee, of the Democratic Party, is expected to vote in the capital Seoul on Thursday morning. "Some say power comes from the barrel of a gun, but I believe a vote is more powerful than a bullet," he told a rally on Wednesday. According to a Gallup poll, more than half of Lee's supporters said they planned to vote early, compared to just 16 per cent of Kim's supporters. Kim has said he will cast his vote in Incheon, west of Seoul, with his campaign framing it as "the beginning of a dramatic turnaround", a nod to General Douglas MacArthur's landing there during the Korean War. Kim's decision to vote early has surprised many on the right, where conspiracy theories about electoral fraud – particularly during early voting – are rife. The 73-year-old however reassured his supporters that there is "nothing to worry about." "If you hesitate to vote early and end up missing the main election, it would be a major loss," said Kim on Wednesday. "Our party will mobilise all its resources to ensure strict monitoring and oversight of early voting," he said. "So please don't worry and take part in it," he said. 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. In contrast, lawyer-turned-politician Lee played a central role in stopping the push to suspect civilian rule, live-streaming his frantic drive to parliament and his scramble over the perimeter fence as he and other lawmakers raced to vote down the decree. He has since vowed to "bring insurrection elements to justice" if elected president.--AFP
Korea Herald
an hour ago
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Lee Jun-seok's graphic language in debate leads to human rights petitions: report
Over 30 petitions filed concerning the presidential candidate's reference to Lee Jae-myung's son's "chopstick" remarks The furor surrounding the presidential candidate Lee Jun-seok's repetition of sexually violent language used by another candidate's son continued to grow, as a local media outlet reported Thursday that 35 petitions related to Lee's remarks have been filed to the state human rights watchdog. According to the Korean-language Hankoreh newspaper, multiple individuals across both genders and different age groups have submitted the petitions to the National Human Rights Commission, complaining that Lee's comments were sexually demeaning to women and overly graphic. Lee of the minor New Reform Party made the comments during a live TV debate on Tuesday. "Such comment cannot be considered a simple gaffe or slip of tongue, but a premediated expression of hatred. I would like to urge the NHRC's investigation for infringement of human rights, in that (Lee) has proliferated discrimination and hatred toward women and social minorities in a public area and during election," a female petitioner in her 50s claimed in her petition. During the TV debate, he addressed the liberal candidates Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party of Korea and Kwon Young-gook of the Democratic Labor Party, asking if it could be considered a misogyny if someone said, "I want to put a chopstick inside a woman's genitals." Both candidates refused to directly answer the question, with Kwon saying he cannot fathom why he is asking such question. The question was a reference to online comments made by the son of Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung. The son of DP's Lee was summarily indicted for the comment online and was fined 5 million won ($3,600) in 2024, but the remark used graphic language for male genitalia. But Lee Jun-seok argued in a separate interview that the comment cannot definitively determined as referring to male genitalia. Lee Jun-seok accused of misogyny Regardless of the offensive words used by the DP candidate's son, petitioners are issuing complaints over Lee Jun-seok repeating the language on TV. Another petitioner surnamed Jeong, a man in his 20s, pointed out that the New Reform Party candidate has repeatedly used remarks that can be seen as discriminatory toward women, physically disabled, senior citizens and other social minorities. The NHRC officially described one of Lee's comments as an example of a hate speech in its booklet published in November of 2021. The comment was made during an interview on May of 2021, Lee said, "Through movies and novels, women in their 20s and 30s have clearly developed a groundless victim mentality that they are being discriminated.' Lee Jun-seok initially stated Wednesday morning that his comments were just to reaffirm the two candidates' position on "unbelievable level of comment made by someone online," criticizing what "the hypocrisy of the liberal faction." But after a barrage of criticism against him, he issued a public apology. "I knew of course that some of the public would have been uncomfortable watching that (comment on TV debate), and for that, I offer my sincere apology," he told reporters after a campaign rally in Seoul. He maintained defense of his comments, saying the issue deserved to be scrutinized. Lee went onto say that he does not know how else to tone down the language on the comment, and said DP's Lee has not sufficiently offered explanations about his son. Lee held a press conference on Thursday morning, and claimed that his comments are not his own creation, but a "toned down version of what Lee Jae-myung's son wrote on an online community."
Business Insider
an hour ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Jefferies Reaffirms Their Buy Rating on VNET Group, Inc. Sponsored ADR (VNET)
Jefferies analyst Edison Lee maintained a Buy rating on VNET Group, Inc. Sponsored ADR (VNET – Research Report) today and set a price target of $15.81. The company's shares closed today at $5.39. Confident Investing Starts Here: According to TipRanks, Lee is a 5-star analyst with an average return of 29.8% and a 61.04% success rate. Lee covers the Technology sector, focusing on stocks such as Apple, Xiaomi, and VNET Group, Inc. Sponsored ADR. VNET Group, Inc. Sponsored ADR has an analyst consensus of Strong Buy, with a price target consensus of $16.23, representing a 201.11% upside. In a report released on May 22, Bank of America Securities also reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with a $13.80 price target. Based on VNET Group, Inc. Sponsored ADR's latest earnings release for the quarter ending December 31, the company reported a quarterly revenue of $2.25 billion and a GAAP net loss of $11.1 million. In comparison, last year the company earned a revenue of $1.9 billion and had a GAAP net loss of $2.44 billion
The Star
an hour ago
- General
- The Star
Small stall, bold flavours
The humble Lai Jie Noodle House stall is located along Jalan Burung Tiong in Taman Bukit Maluri, KL. TUCKED away in a corner in Taman Bukit Maluri, Kuala Lumpur, the modest stall that is Lai Jie Noodle House is easy to miss unless you know where to look. This humble spot serves up a variety of hearty noodle dishes that capture the essence of Malaysian comfort food. Customers can expect the likes of pan mee, loh mee, pork noodles, wantan noodles and curry noodles alongside a selection of stir-fried options such as Hokkien mee and Singapore-style meehoon. Run by Low Bee Li and her husband since 2004, the stall is named after the 60-year-old founder herself, in the Cantonese pronunciation. Low and her husband Lee Yat Cheong, 66, have been dishing up bowls of noodles for breakfast and early lunch for over two decades. Their stall is especially popular among morning market traders and regulars from a nearby wet market. 'Some of my regulars' favourites are the curry noodles, Hokkien mee, and fried mee xian,' said Low. 'We open as early as 5.30am, and the peak crowd is usually in the morning when people fill up their bellies before heading off to the market or nearby shops.' She keeps busy with taking orders and serving, while Lee mans the wok. Having picked up the trade in his teens, Lee brings decades of experience to each dish. His cooking does not fall short in delivering the most essential element in Chinese-style noodles – wok hei (breath of the wok). I have tried the Hokkien mee, and it is a clear standout. Hokkien mee comes with pork slices, vegetables and lard. Fried in a dark, sticky soy-based sauce, the smoky, umami-laden noodles come with a generous portion of crispy pork lard that adds texture and depth. The richness of the dish is further complemented by tender pork slices and leafy greens, making it a delightful plate through and through. Equally deserving of praise are their wantan noodles. The noodles are springy and firm, tossed in a balanced soy-based sauce and topped with slices of char siew (barbecued pork). The wantan noodles are topped with a serving of 'char siew'. The dish is served with several plump wantan dumplings, offering that comforting accompaniment one expects from a local favourite. The curry noodles are clearly one of their best-sellers, as they were already sold out when I last visited at noon. A return visit is certainly warranted. Hopefully next time, I will be early enough to get my hands on a bowl. Lai Jie Noodle House opens daily from 5.30am to 12.30pm, or until sold out. It is located along the row of stalls in Jalan Burung Tiong, Taman Bukit Maluri. Be warned that looking for a parking spot here can be tricky.
