New South Korean President Lee Jae-myung rode a wave of voter anger against the December martial law attempt by his ousted predecessor, but his ability to lead will be judged by the strength of his policies.
Lee’s decisive victory in Tuesday’s snap election over Kim Moon-soo, the candidate for the conservative People Power Party (PPP), hands the liberal leader a resounding mandate and his Democratic Party (DP) control of parliament.
Healing the political rifts that led to former South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol’s shock martial law and its divisive aftermath will be a tall order.
Analysts say both candidates were vague on their policy plans during the campaign, and Lee Jun-han, a political science professor at Incheon National University, said the results are more an indictment of Yoon and his PPP’s poor performance than an endorsement of the DP.
Kim, who opposed Yoon’s impeachment, was unprepared and the PPP did not show remorse after the martial law, he said.
The next president “should properly interpret that the people’s choice has been one-sided and reflect that in the government’s operation or politics in the future,” he said. “If they don’t, public sentiment will fluctuate quickly.”
While Lee Jae-myung has had his eye on the presidency for years, there have been major developments since he narrowly lost to Yoon in the 2022 election, said Kim Jun-seok, a political science professor at Dongguk University.
“Now he has restoration of democracy as one of his tasks,” he said. “Nonetheless, there are huge challenges faced by South Korea. A grim outlook on the economy that’s projected to grow maybe less than 1 percent. And there’s a crisis outside, dealing with [US President Donald] Trump. He has a lot of work to do.”
Voters said they were looking for the winner of the snap election to calm the economic and political shocks that have roiled the country since the Dec. 3 martial law decree led to months of economic downturn and sparked nationwide protests.
However, many complained about a lack of specifics in policy debates.
Lee Jae-myung has pledged to draft a second supplementary budget for the year as soon as the election is over, and promised vouchers to help local businesses, and subsidies for childcare, youth and the elderly to address growing discontent around tightening purse strings.
His camp says they intend to seek more time to negotiate on trade with Trump, but it is unclear how any request for an extension of the tariff deadline would be received in Washington.
With a rise in anti-China sentiment among South Koreans and Trump’s push to isolate Beijing, the new president must also tread carefully with any plans to improve ties with China.
Lee Jae-myung has also shown sensitivity to the political winds, moderating some of his stances on China, Japan and populist economic policies such as universal income ahead of the election.
“I hope he will resuscitate the economy and get rid of insurrection forces,” said Im Young-taek, 64, a small business owner. “And I do really hope he will make people comfortable. Things may not be easy with Trump, but I hope he will hire capable aides and resolve the issues well.”
Lee Jae-myung’s party will control parliament, easing the passage of legislation and budgets after years of deadlock between Yoon and the legislature.
However, that might do little to soothe political polarization, with conservatives warning that Lee Jae-myung and the DP would steamroll over any opposition.
“They have absolute power, which could lead to a departure from social unity,” said Incheon University’s Lee Jun-han. “Since they are the absolute majority, there seems to be little check and balance to stop them.”
Last month, a DP-led committee passed legislation aimed at changing an election law that Lee Jae-myung had been convicted of violating.
It has also promised to pass legislation clarifying what protections presidents have from criminal investigations, a move seen as trying to reduce Lee Jae-myung’s exposure to other ongoing charges.
Speaking at the Copenhagen Democracy Summit on May 13, former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said that democracies must remain united and that “Taiwan’s security is essential to regional stability and to defending democratic values amid mounting authoritarianism.” Earlier that day, Tsai had met with a group of Danish parliamentarians led by Danish Parliament Speaker Pia Kjaersgaard, who has visited Taiwan many times, most recently in November last year, when she met with President William Lai (賴清德) at the Presidential Office. Kjaersgaard had told Lai: “I can assure you that ... you can count on us. You can count on our support
Denmark has consistently defended Greenland in light of US President Donald Trump’s interests and has provided unwavering support to Ukraine during its war with Russia. Denmark can be proud of its clear support for peoples’ democratic right to determine their own future. However, this democratic ideal completely falls apart when it comes to Taiwan — and it raises important questions about Denmark’s commitment to supporting democracies. Taiwan lives under daily military threats from China, which seeks to take over Taiwan, by force if necessary — an annexation that only a very small minority in Taiwan supports. Denmark has given China a
Many local news media over the past week have reported on Internet personality Holger Chen’s (陳之漢) first visit to China between Tuesday last week and yesterday, as remarks he made during a live stream have sparked wide discussions and strong criticism across the Taiwan Strait. Chen, better known as Kuan Chang (館長), is a former gang member turned fitness celebrity and businessman. He is known for his live streams, which are full of foul-mouthed and hypermasculine commentary. He had previously spoken out against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and criticized Taiwanese who “enjoy the freedom in Taiwan, but want China’s money”
A high-school student surnamed Yang (楊) gained admissions to several prestigious medical schools recently. However, when Yang shared his “learning portfolio” on social media, he was caught exaggerating and even falsifying content, and his admissions were revoked. Now he has to take the “advanced subjects test” scheduled for next month. With his outstanding performance in the general scholastic ability test (GSAT), Yang successfully gained admissions to five prestigious medical schools. However, his university dreams have now been frustrated by the “flaws” in his learning portfolio. This is a wake-up call not only for students, but also teachers. Yang did make a big
RSS