Latest news with #LeeJun-seok
Dubai Eye
2 days ago
- Politics
- Dubai Eye
South Koreans turn out in record numbers for early voting in presidential election
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 per cent from 1.5 per cent 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 per cent of total eligible voters, had voted as of around 11:00 am (0200 GMT), according to National Election Commission data, the highest turnout for the equivalent period in a presidential poll and compared with 5.38 per cent 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 per cent public support, followed by his main conservative rival Kim Moon-soo of the People Power Party with 35 per cent and another conservative candidate, the New Reform Party's Lee Jun-seok, on 11 per cent. 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.
New Straits Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Widening Gen Z gender gap in global politics
SOUTH Korea's young women are expected to lead a broad political backlash against the main conservative party at presidential elections next Tuesday, punishing it for months of chaos. Multitudes of young men, though, are unlikely to join them. In democracies worldwide, a political gender divide is intensifying among Gen Z voters, with young men voting for right-wing parties and young women leaning left, a break from pre-pandemic years when both tended to vote for progressives. Recent elections spanning North America, Europe and Asia show this trend is either consolidating or accelerating, with angry, frustrated men in their 20s breaking to the right. First-time South Korean voter Lee Jeong-min is one of them. He says he will vote for the right-wing Reform Party's candidate, Lee Jun-seok. Lee, the candidate, vows to shut down the ministry of gender equality, speaking to an issue that resonates with men like Jeong-min, who resents that only men have to do military service. "As a young man, I find this to be one of the most unfair realities of living in Korea. "At the prime of their youth — at 21 or 22 years old — young men, unlike their female peers, are unable to fully engage in various activities in society because they have to serve 18 months in the military." In South Korea, almost 30 per cent of men aged 18-29 plan to back the Reform Party compared with just three per cent of young women, according to a Gallup Korea poll this month. Overall, more than half of the men back right-wing parties while almost half the women want the left-wing Democratic Party candidate to win. The divergence shrinks for older age groups. Political economist Soohyun Lee, of King's College London, said many young South Korean men felt unable to meet society's expectations: find a good job, get married, buy a home and start a family. And they blame feminism, many believing that women are preferred for jobs. In South Korea and other democracies, Gen Z men are seeing an erosion of their relative advantage, especially since the pandemic — to the point where in a few countries the gender pay gap among 20-somethings favours young women. European Union data show one of them is France, where men aged 18-34 voted in larger numbers for Marine le Pen's far-right party than women in last year's legislative elections. In Britain, where more young men than women vote conservative, males aged 16-24 are more likely to be neither employed, nor in education than female counterparts, official data shows. In the West, young men blame immigration as well as diversity programmes for competition for jobs. In Germany's general election in February, the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) won a record 20.8 per cent of the vote, tugged along by an undercurrent of support from young men — though the leader of the party is a woman. Men aged 18-24 voted 27 per cent for the AfD while young women ran to the other end of the political spectrum, voting 35 per cent for the far-left Linke party. The gender divide is not restricted to Gen Z, voters born since the mid-to-late 1990s. Millennials, aged in their 30s and early 40s, have felt the winds of change for longer. In Canada last month, men aged 35-54 voted 50 per cent for opposition conservatives in an election turned upside down by United States President Donald Trump's tariffs. The Liberals, which were bracing for defeat, rode an anti-Trump wave back to power, thanks in large part to female voters. Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, which promised a manufacturing renaissance and attacked diversity, resonated with young white and Hispanic men, but turned off young women. So how does the Gen Z war end? Pollsters said it could drag on unless governments addressed core issues, such as home affordability and precarious employment. "If the future generation is ever so divided along the lines of gender and refuses to engage with each other to build social consensus, I do not think we can successfully tackle these huge issues," Lee, of King's College, said.
India Today
2 days ago
- Politics
- India Today
Record early voting in South Korea as it heads to snap polls amid turmoil
South Koreans turned out in record numbers for early voting on Thursday ahead of next week's snap presidential election, official data showed, as both leading candidates urged voters to back them to change a country in June 3 election comes after months of political turmoil and a power vacuum following the ouster of former leader Yoon Suk Yeol over a botched attempt to impose martial 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 alongside young voters in a university 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 per cent from 1.5 per cent 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 address any reverse 8.7 million people, or 19.6 per cent of total eligible voters, had voted as of 6 p.m. (0900 GMT), according to National Election Commission data, the highest turnout for the equivalent period in a presidential poll and compared with 17.6 per cent in the 2022 Korea has 44.39 million eligible voters and early voting is allowed on Thursday and last published Gallup Korea poll before the blackout period put Lee at 49 per cent public support, followed by Kim Moon-soo of the conservative People Power Party with 35 per cent and the New Reform Party's Lee Jun-seok on 11 per and Lee Jun-seok also voted on Thursday."Without voting, there is no hope for the country," Kim said after voting in Democratic Party frontrunner Lee's constituency."If you vote for (Lee), there will be no freedom for the country," he said, warning his main opponent would abuse his party's parliamentary had narrowed a gap of more than 20 percentage points 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.
Daily Maverick
2 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
South Koreans turn out in record numbers for early voting as presidential hopefuls vow change
South Koreans turned out in record numbers for early voting on Thursday ahead of next week's snap presidential election, official data showed, as both leading candidates urged voters to back them to change a country in crisis. The June 3 election comes after months of political turmoil and a power vacuum following the ouster of former leader Yoon Suk Yeol over a botched attempt 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 alongside young voters in a university district. 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 address any reverse discrimination. About 8.7 million people, or 19.6% of total eligible voters, had voted as of 6 p.m. (0900 GMT), according to National Election Commission data, the highest turnout for the equivalent period in a presidential poll and compared with 17.6% in the 2022 vote. South Korea has 44.39 million eligible voters and early voting is allowed on Thursday and Friday. The last published Gallup Korea poll before the blackout period put Lee at 49% public support, followed by Kim Moon-soo of the conservative People Power Party with 35% and the New Reform Party's Lee Jun-seok on 11%. Kim and Lee Jun-seok also voted on Thursday. 'Without voting, there is no hope for the country,' Kim said after voting in Democratic Party frontrunner Lee's constituency. 'If you vote for (Lee), there will be no freedom for the country,' he said, warning his main opponent would abuse his party's parliamentary majority. Kim had narrowed a gap of more than 20 percentage points 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.
GMA Network
2 days ago
- Politics
- GMA Network
South Koreans turn out for early voting as presidential hopefuls vow change
People wait in a line to cast their early vote for the upcoming presidential election at a polling station in Seoul, South Korea, May 29, 2025. Yonhap via REUTERS SEOUL — South Koreans turned out in record numbers for early voting on Thursday ahead of next week's snap presidential election, official data showed, as both leading candidates urged voters to back them to change a country in crisis. The June 3 election comes after months of political turmoil and a power vacuum following the ouster of former leader Yoon Suk Yeol over a botched attempt 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 alongside young voters in a university district. 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 reorganize the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family to promote equal rights and address any reverse discrimination. About 8.7 million people, or 19.6% of total eligible voters, had voted as of 6 p.m. (0900 GMT), according to National Election Commission data, the highest turnout for the equivalent period in a presidential poll and compared with 17.6% in the 2022 vote. South Korea has 44.39 million eligible voters and early voting is allowed on Thursday and Friday. The last published Gallup Korea poll before the blackout period put Lee at 49% public support, followed by Kim Moon-soo of the conservative People Power Party with 35% and the New Reform Party's Lee Jun-seok on 11%. Kim and Lee Jun-seok also voted on Thursday. "Without voting, there is no hope for the country," Kim said after voting in Democratic Party frontrunner Lee's constituency. "If you vote for [Lee], there will be no freedom for the country," he said, warning his main opponent would abuse his party's parliamentary majority. Kim had narrowed a gap of more than 20 percentage points 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. — Reuters
