South Koreans are voting for a new president after one of the most bitter political campaigns in recent memory. In a tight race, an outspoken liberal ruling party candidate and a conservative former prosecutor are considered the favorites.
“Despite the significance of this year’s election, the race has centered too much on negative campaigning,” said Jang Seung-Jin, a professor at Seoul’s Kookmin University, adding that neither leading candidate laid out a convincing blueprint on how they would lead South Korea.
About 44 million South Koreans aged 18 or order are eligible to vote, out of the country’s 52 million people. About 16 million cast ballots during early voting last week. About 3 1/2 hours after Wednesday’s voting began, the turnout stood at 8.2 %, according to the website of the National Election Commission.
While both Lee and Yoon share some similar economic and welfare policies, they’ve clashed over North Korea and other foreign policy issues.Lee, who has often expressed nationalistic views, calls for exemptions to U.N. sanctions so that dormant inter-Korean economic projects can be revived, and hopes to mediate between Pyongyang and Washington over the North Korean nuclear crisis.
“I would him some manners and make him come to his senses completely,” Yoon told a rally near Seoul. With conservatives initially in shambles after Park’s fall, Moon’s approval rating at one point hit 83% as he pushed hard to achieve reconciliation with North Korea and delve into alleged corruption by past conservative leaders. He eventually faced strong backlash as talks on North Korea’s nuclear program faltered and his anti-corruption drive raised questions of fairness.