South Korea’s centre-left leader Lee wins presidency

SEOUL: South Korea´s centre-left leader Lee Jae-myung hailed voters´ “great decision” as he was declared the winner of a snap presidential election early on Wednesday, capping months of political chaos.

Six months to the day after ex-president Yoon Suk Yeol plunged the country into crisis with his disastrous declaration of martial law, official results from the National Election Commission showed Lee had defeated conservative rival Kim Moon-soo, who had earlier conceded the race.

Voter turnout was the highest in nearly three decades. “I will humbly accept the choice of the people. Congratulations to the elected candidate Lee Jae-myung,” Kim said as the last ballots were still being counted.

Lee had earlier thanked voters for placing their trust in him, saying he would do his “utmost to fulfil the great responsibility and mission entrusted to me, so as not to disappoint the expectations of our people.”

In a nod to South Korea´s growing partisan divide, exacerbated by the chaos after Yoon´s martial law bid, Lee said those that did not support him remained “fellow citizens” and promised to “move forward with hope and make a fresh start from this moment on”.

He also promised to “pursue dialogue, communication, and cooperation” between Seoul and its arch-enemy Pyongyang, with which relations plunged to their lowest level in years under Yoon´s hawkish approach.

Lee will take office almost immediately, as soon as the commission validates the tally, likely early Wednesday. With 96.74 percent of the total ballots counted overnight it was mathematically impossible for Kim to catch him, the official figures showed.