The competing candidates to replace Yoon Suk Yeol, who was ousted after an abortive attempt to impose martial law, have been making their final pitches.
Two candidates, Lee Jae-myung and Kim Moon-soo, who are hoping to become South Korea’s next president, are making their final pitches to voters ahead of the June 3 election.
On Monday, they crisscrossed the country with varying promises to revive the economy and steer the Far Eastern nation out of months of political turmoil sparked by a failed attempt to impose martial law.
After their travels, Lee, who represents the liberal Democratic Party, and his conservative rival Kim, from the People Power Party (PPP), will converge on the capital, Seoul, for Tuesday’s main vote. Some ballots have already been cast during two days of early voting held last week
The National Election Commission reported that more than 15 million South Koreans cast their votes during that period, a turnout of 34.74 percent, the second-highest figure since nationwide early voting was introduced in 2014.
The election was triggered by the removal of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who imposed martial law for several hours in December, plunging Asia’s fourth-largest economy into months of political upheaval.
Lee has said he will heal the divisions deepened in the aftermath of the incident and has accused the PPP, formerly led by Yoon, of being “insurrection sympathizers.”
Yoon is currently on trial for insurrection, an accusation he denies, but the implications of the ongoing case have nonetheless dogged PPP candidate Kim throughout the campaign.
“We are at a historic inflection point of whether we go on as a democratic republic or become a country of dictators,” Lee told a campaign rally in the capital.
Later, he said his top priority as president would be reforming the economy, adding that this includes addressing the struggles of Korean small-business owners and the rising cost of living.
Kim began his last day on the campaign trail on the southern island of Jeju before heading north.
He expressed his regret again on Monday for Yoon’s martial law declaration and vowed to institute political reform should he be victorious after Tuesday’s vote.
The three-week campaign is due to come to a close at midnight, local time.
By Guy Birchall
