Icon of justice and pragmatist in close race for S. Korean presidency, but younger voters may decide who wins

Democratic Party's presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung at a campaign stop in Seongnam, just south of Seoul, South Korea, on March 5, 2022. PHOTO: EPA-EFE

SEOUL - Come Wednesday (March 9), South Koreans will go to the polls to elect a new president for the post-Covid-19 era.

The race to the Blue House so far has been neck and neck between Mr Lee Jae-myung of the liberal ruling Democratic Party (DP) and Mr Yoon Suk-yeol of the conservative main opposition People Power Party (PPP).

They each garnered around 40 per cent of votes in various opinion polls, with Mr Yoon maintaining a tiny lead.

Mr Yoon, 61, a former prosecutor-general, is an icon of justice who promises an era of change, while his rival, Mr Lee, 57, is a pragmatist known for pushing through populist policies in his previous roles as governor of Gyeonggi province and mayor of Seongnam city.

Experts say voters in their 20s and 30s who are still undecided may hold the key to who becomes the next president of South Korea.

However, this group appears to have lost faith in both main parties and are frustrated with their candidates after family-related scandals dominated headlines, overshadowing news about their strengths and policies.

The presidential campaign so far has been tainted with accusations and mudslinging.

For instance, Mr Lee has been accused of possible involvement in a land development project corruption case.

Meanwhile, there were allegations of misdeeds by Mr Yoon's wife. She is said to have falsified her credentials in job applications and was allegedly involved in a stock manipulation case.

"This election campaign has been so awful, I don't even feel like voting," said communications specialist Anastasia Lee, 33.

"The candidates are just busy attacking other candidates over their scandals, and do not emphasise enough their campaign pledges.

"Lee doesn't seem to be really progressive. Yoon doesn't know anything about politics and is just out to provoke conflict, such as threatening pre-emptive strikes against North Korea."

People in their 20s and 30s account for 34 per cent of all eligible voters in South Korea.

In the 2017 election, this group had likely voted for current President Moon Jae-in of DP after being frustrated with PPP, whose earlier Blue House representative Park Geun-hye was booted out of office after being impeached over a massive corruption and power abuse scandal.

But now, these young adults are just as disappointed with DP following the Moon administration's failure to deliver on its campaign promises of change.

The party's policies have left young people struggling to find good jobs and unable to afford property in Seoul as prices have risen at least twofold.

"People are kind of mad and feel there's a need to fix things and bring change to the current government," said human resource manager David Lee, 26.

"This election will be a great chance for us to show... what we really need, and it's not the superficial things. We need lower housing prices. We want our country to be sustainable with higher birth rates, and we need a stable relationship with the United States, Japan and China."

Added Ms Lee, the communications specialist: "After the 2017 impeachment, we had expected a different new era, but nothing changed and in fact things got worse. Right now, what we need is a president who can make things work for us."

Polls have shown that more than 50 per cent of voters want a change in government, which means Mr Yoon, despite his lack of political experience, may stand a better chance against his rival.

However, there are also voters who believe that Mr Lee, given his experience in running Gyeonggi province and Seongnam, is more ready to be president.A last-minute withdrawal by the third-most popular candidate, Mr Ahn Cheol-soo of the minor opposition People Party, whose support rate was 7 per cent, according to opinion polls, may also swing voters to either of the two front runners.

Mr Ahn announced his withdrawal last Thursday and threw his support behind Mr Yoon in a bid to boost the latter's chances.

But polls show that many of his supporters feel betrayed by his surprise move and may not vote for Mr Yoon.

Both front runners are foreign policy novices.

Analysts said a Lee presidency will probably continue the Moon administration's foreign policies such as being pro-North Korea and avoiding overt alignment with either the United States or China.

On the other hand, a Yoon presidency will boost the US-South Korea security alliance and improve strained ties with Japan due to historical spats, said the experts.

Asia specialist Sean King from New York-based consulting firm Park Strategies said Mr Yoon "sounds more in sync with US policy, especially when it comes to taking a harder line on mainland China".

"But even if he does win, I wouldn't expect Seoul to formally join the Quad. That's because Korea still sees itself as a shrimp among whales and will always want to keep some manoeuvrability and flexibility," Mr King told The Straits Times.

He was referring to the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue that involves the US, India, Australia and Japan.

"It's worth remembering that liberal South Korean presidents, including outgoing incumbent Moon Jae-in, have also taken actions favourable to US interests."

At a glance

Polling Day
Wednesday (advance voting was held on Friday and yesterday)

Number of polling stations: 3,552

Number of candidates: 12 

The main candidates:
 • Mr Lee Jae-myung of the 
ruling Democratic Party
 • Mr Yoon Suk-yeol of the main
opposition People Power Party
 • Ms Sim Sang-jung of the 
Justice Party
 • Mr Ahn Cheol-soo of the 
People Party dropped out 
and threw his support behind Mr Yoon. 

Total eligible voters: 44,197,692

Campaign period:
Feb 15 to March 8

Main issues in election:
Regime change, real estate reforms and youth unemployment.

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