Liberal wins South Korean election and pledges unity

Lee Jae Myung becomes president after impeachment chaos

- ALASTAIR JAMIESON

Liberal opposition candidate Lee Jae Myung was elected president of South Korea yesterday, promising to unite the country six months after it was shaken by a surprise attempt to impose martial law.

With a clear lead in the 85 per cent of votes counted so far, he told supporters he would also find a way for the country to coexist with North Korea through dialogue and communication.

His conservative rival, Kim Moon Soo of the People Power Party (PPP), conceded the race. Lee’s victory stands to usher in a political sea change in Asia’s fourth-largest economy, after the backlash against the martial law episode brought down conservative Yoon Suk Yeol.

Nearly 80 per cent of South Korea’s 44.39 million eligible voters cast their ballots, the highest turnout for a presidential election in the country since 1997, with Lee terming the polls “judgment day” against Yoon’s actions and the PPP’s failure to distance itself from that decision.