South Korea elects president in early vote

Voting in the presidential primaries in South Korea has begun, the BNR reported. They were necessitated by the removal of former leader Yun Suk-yeol from office after trying to impose martial law.

The early presidential elections in South Korea are aimed at restoring political stability in the country after months of turmoil.
The vote is held in a single round. The candidate who receives the most votes is considered the winner and is entitled to serve a five-year term.

The leading candidates, according to a survey by “Gallup Korea“ from a week ago, are the liberal chairman of the Democratic Party, Lee Jae-myeon, with 49% public support, followed by his main rival, the conservative Kim Moon-soo of the “People Power” party, with 35%. Another conservative candidate, Lee Joon-seok of the New Reform Party, is third with 11% support.

All the candidates in the presidential race are men, and for the first time since 2007, there are no women in the final list, according to the National Election Commission (NEC). South Korea has only had a woman in office once, Park Geun-hye (2013-2017). She was removed from office and sentenced to more than 20 years in prison in 2018 for corruption and abuse of power, but was later pardoned due to poor health. She herself claims to have been the victim of political revenge.