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Millions of South Korean voters voted in a new presidential election Tuesday after former President Yoon Suk Yeol was removed.
Conservative Yoon faces trial of rebellion, accusing him of a brief martial arts declaration in December.
The pre-election investigation suggests that Yoon's liberal Lee Jae-Myung, who seems to be frustrated with the conservative public after Yoon's martial law, is expected to win.
Major conservative candidate Kim Moon Soo has been working to win moderate swing voters as his BJP is dissatisfied with internal disputes about how Yoon’s behavior is viewed.
South Korea faces high-risk elections; fear of China, North Korea, and U.S. connections shape voter concerns
Lee Jae-Myung, the presidential candidate of the South Korean Democratic Party, held a presidential election in Seoul, South Korea on Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP)
Over the past six months, a large number of people have gathered in the streets to protest Yin or support him.
The winner of the election will be sworn in as president immediately on Wednesday for a full five-year term without a typical two-month transition period. The new president will face major challenges, including an economic slowdown, tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korea's nuclear threat.
Voting began at 6 a.m. and there are more than 14,000 polling stations nationwide. The poll will end at 8 p.m., and observers say the winner can be announced as early as midnight.
South Korea's president dismissed from office four months after martial law was announced
The presidential candidate of the People's Power Party Kim Moon Soo held an election event, which held a campaign rally in Seoul, South Korea on Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP)
As of 2 p.m. local time, more than 13 million people voted. During last week's two-day early poll, about 15 million voted, meaning voter turnout was 65.5%. South Korea has 44.4 million qualified voters.
Lee's Democrats led legislation to expel Wong on Tuesday, urging voters to “make a harsh and firm judgment on conservatives” on Yoon's martial law.
Lee argued in his final campaign speech on Monday that Kim's victory would represent “the return of the rebel forces, the destruction of democracy and the deprivation of human rights.” He also vowed to revitalize the economy, reduce inequality and alleviate national divisions.
A woman votes at a polling station in Seoul, South Korea on Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP)
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Yoon's former Labor Secretary Kim warned that Lee's victory would give him too much power to launch political revenge against his opponents and legislative laws to protect him from all kinds of laws, as his party already controls the parliament.
Lee “is now trying to capture all the power in South Korea and establish a dictatorship like Hitler,” Kim said at a rally in the southeastern city of Busan.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
