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Summary

  • Opposition's Lee Jae-myung will become South Korea's next president, winning the country's first election since impeachment chaos

  • Kim Moon-soo of the People Power Party conceded defeat and congratulated Lee in a brief speech on Wednesday, just after midnight local time

  • Millions voted on Tuesday in a snap election triggered by former president Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment over his failed martial law bid

  • The election has been shaped by the fallout from Yoon's brief but disastrous move in December, which triggered divisive protests and months of political chaos

  • Lee Jae-myung had fought this election as a referendum on martial law – promising to make sure it never happens again – and it worked

  • But now he faces the challenge of bringing together a polarised country, businesses anxious over US tariffs and an unpredictable ally in Donald Trump

Three things to know about South Korea's snap election

Live Reporting

Edited by Yvette Tan and Gavin Butler with reporting from Jean Mackenzie, Shaimaa Khalil, David Oh, Juna Moon, Yuna Ku, Rachel Lee and Hyojung Kim in Seoul

  1. Analysis

    Martial law fractured South Korea. This election is a chance to heal

    Jean Mackenzie
    Seoul correspondent

    South Korea is still recovering from the martial law crisis last December, when then president, Yoon Suk Yeol, tried to orchestrate a military takeover. Although he failed and was impeached, the chaos he unleashed that night has festered.

    While stuck in limbo, without a president, the country has become more polarised and its politics more turbulent. The main opposition candidate, Lee Jae-myung, has been campaigning in a bullet proof vest because of the number of death threats he says he has been getting.

    This election is an opportunity to steer South Korea back onto safer, more stable ground, and heal these fractures. So rather than be decided on policy, it become predominantly a referendum on martial law.

    The ruling party’s candidate Kim Moon-soo, until recently, defended President Yoon and his declaration of martial law. The opposition candidate has therefore portrayed himself as the only person who can ensure this never happens again.

    Voters here are acutely aware of the significance of today’s vote, having almost had their democratic rights removed. Everyone I have spoken to has told me they plan to use their vote. “My vote is a piece of power”, said one 28-year-old data engineer. “I hope we have the power to save our democracy and make it greater than before”.

    Read the full story here.

  2. Voting as of 1pm shows higher turnout than 2022 election

    As of 13:00 local time (05:00 BST), turnout at this presidential election is 62.1%.

    That's 0.8% higher than the 1pm figure for South Korea's last poll in 2022.

    The overall figure is much higher than what we reported at 10:00 local time (02:00 BST), because the election commission has updated it to include early, absentee and overseas ballots.

  3. 'How can there not be a single female candidate">Suhnwook Lee
    BBC News, Reporting from Seoul

    Hong Sook-ja looks at the camera, with a star-shaped light behind her.Hong Sook-ja

    Hong Sook-ja, 91, was South Korea's first-ever female presidential candidate

    Hong Sook-ja, now 91, was South Korea's first-ever female presidential candidate back in 1987. She's criticised the lack of female representation at this election - the first in 18 years without a single woman on the ballot.

    Hong was also the country’s first female diplomat, dedicating her life to the women’s rights movement after experiencing severe discrimination in the foreign service.

    In 1987, she ran for president under the slogan, ‘A political miracle must come with a female president!’.

    “Back then, I wanted to show that women, too, could dare to run for the presidency,” she said.

    Election campaign posters from 1987 feature Hong Sook-ja.Hong Sook-ja

    Hong ran for the presidency in 1987

    Since her historic candidacy, more women began stepping into the presidential race. In 2012, Park Geun-hye was elected as South Korea’s first female president.

    However this year marks a setback—it is the first presidential election since 2007 with no female candidates.

    “I think we’re going through a slump,” Hong said. “President Park benefited from the legacy of her father, the late President Park Chung-hee. I wonder if we’ll ever see a woman become president entirely on her own merits.”

  4. If you're just ing us

    It's approaching 13:00 (05:00 BST) in Seoul on South Korea's election day.

    If you're just ing us, this is what you need to know:

    • Millions of South Koreans are voting to decide their next president, six months after Yoon Suk Yeol plunged the country into political crisis with his martial law declaration
    • Lee Jae-myung, of the Democratic Party, is the favourite to win, and is up against Kim Moon-soo, from the ruling People Power Party
    • Many voters have told the BBC they want stability, after months of political turmoil
    • In the early hours of voting, turnout was higher than at South Korea's last election in 2022
    • Polls close at 20:00 local time (12:00 BST), with results expected in the hours after

  5. Young South Korean voters tell BBC they want a 'decisive leader'

    Rachel Lee
    BBC Korean

    Park Joon-hyung, a voter in South Korea's election, smiles at the camera.BBC / Rachel Lee

    Park Joon-hyung voted in Seoul

    Our BBC Korean colleagues have also been speaking to younger voters in South Korea about how they felt about this election.

    Park Joon-hyung, in his 20s, said voting is a "chance to take part in politics".

    "Things have been too hectic over the past few months. To achieve that, I believe we need a decisive leader. And since I majored in international diplomacy at university, I paid close attention to each candidate’s foreign policy. I looked for someone whose values align with mine."

    Lee Min-jung, a woman in her 20s, said she has "always wanted a leader who can truly guide our country well".

    "But honestly, I’m not sure which candidate can do that right now. I’ve looked through all the pledges, and as part of the younger generation, I focused on candidates who had policies for our future - things like housing and for newlyweds. Those are the issues that matter to us."

  6. South Korea's new president will face big external challenges

    James Chater
    Reporting from Sydney

    A yellow line marks the boundary between North and South Korea at the demilitarised zone.Reuters

    It has been a tumultuous six months in South Korean politics.

    While today’s election will answer one big question, South Korea’s new president will immediately face significant external challenges - including with its mutual defence treaty ally, the United States.

    Just last night, the government held an emergency meeting with major South Korean steelmakers after US President Donald Trump said he would double steel tariffs to 50% - due to come into effect the day after this election.

    South Korea was the fourth-largest exporter of steel to the US last year.

    And that’s before Seoul gets to dealing with North Korea. Pyongyang has been working to strengthen its armed forces, and had railed against the previous istration’s efforts to draw closer to both Washington and Tokyo.

  7. What do opinion polls say?

    Lee Jae-myung entered the race with overwhelming popularity. Right after the presidential nominees were finalised on 11 May, an opinion poll showed that he had from 51% of South Koreans.

    The same survey, held by research company Gallup Korea, put Kim Moon-soo at 31% and Lee Joon-seok at 8%.

    But since then, the edge that Lee holds over his main rival has waned. Another Gallup Korea poll conducted last week, puts for Lee at 45% - while Kim is closing the gap with 36%.

    If polls are anything to go by, this race is shaping up to be far from tight. Lee still holds a very comfortable lead over Kim.

  8. Nowhere too obscure to be a polling station...

    We're getting some images showing the many faces of South Korean polling stations: including baseball stadiums, barbecue restaurants and car dealerships.

    Baseballs and baseball bats are in front of a polling station in South Korea.News1

    This baseball stadium doubled up as a polling station

    A Korean barbecue restaurant table is in front of a polling boothNews1

    Order up: barbecue and ballot boxes

    A wide shot of a car dealership shows people queuing to vote in the background.News1

    People line up to vote at a polling station in a South Korean car dealership

    Two women walk into a polling station at a day care centre in South Korea.News1

    Democracy day care: voters cast their ballot at a day care centre

  9. 'The nation feels divided', voter tells BBC

    Yoo Jae-woo looks at the camera outside a polling station in Seoul, South Korea.BBC / Rachel Lee

    Yoo Jae-woo voted in Seoul

    Yoo Jae Woo, who voted in Seoul, told the BBC that "no matter who becomes president, the country needs stability".

    "The new leader must avoid extreme polarisation and focus on running the country responsibly. Right now, the nation feels deeply divided, and that’s why harmony must come first."

    "We need to feel united, as one. I don’t want to reveal who I voted for, but one thing I can say for sure: we need a leader who won’t divide the country any further."

  10. The polarised country Yoon has left behind

    Backview of a woman waving a large South Korean flag with a photo of Yoon Suk Yeol printed over it. She's standing before a large crowd gathered on a big road.Getty Images

    Whoever wins the presidential race today will have to lead South Koreans through a widening political divide - triggered by Yoon's tumultuous last days in office.

    Since his shock martial law move, former President Yoon Suk Yeol has been removed from office and faces insurrection charges.

    And although thousands took to the streets, calling for his arrest and removal, his ers believe Yoon is a victim of election fraud, and that his martial law declaration was meant to protect the country from a malicious opposition.

    These narratives, fuelled by right-wing YouTubers, have led to an increasingly extreme pro-Yoon movement. People have staged protests, stormed a courthouse and even set themselves on fire for the cause.

    This new trend of violence has surprised and created rifts within conservatives themselves.

    Read more about the fringe movement behind Yoon.

  11. Impeached former president Yoon Suk-yeol casts ballot

    Yoon Suk-yeol leans down to to vote at a polling station in Seoul, South Korea.EPA

    Yoon Suk-yeol voted in Seoul alongside his wife

    South Korea's impeached former president Yoon Suk-yeol has cast his ballot alongside his wife at a polling station in Seocho Ward, Seoul.

    Yoon was formally impeached in April after the country's Constitutional Court upheld a parliament vote to remove him from office after his failed to bid to declare martial law threw the country into political turmoil.

  12. Turnout so far higher than in 2022

    South Korean voters line up outside a polling station.Reuters

    Voter reached 13.5% as of 10:00 local time (02:00 BST), 1.7% higher than from the same time at the last election in 2022, according to South Korea's Election Commission.

    Experts still say the final turnout could be lower, as early voting was lower than at the previous election.

    Turnout at South Korea's last two presidential elections was 77%.

  13. Who will win? South Korea's shamans are divided

    Shaman Yang Su-bong dressed in a red traditional hanbokGetty Images

    Shaman Yang Su-bong says Lee is the winner that appeared in her visions "years go", but some fellow shamans think otherwise

    Many South Koreans, including politicians, often go to shamans for spiritual advice and to predict their futures.

    But the outcome of the presidential election appears to be a hard nut to crack even for them.

    Shamans interviewed by the AFP news agency do not appear to agree on who the country's next leader will be. Yang Su-bong says frontrunner Lee Jae-myung is the winner who appeared in her visions "years ago", but another shaman, Lee Dong-hyeon says he is not so sure.

    Hong Myeong-hui, a fellow shaman, acknowledges Kim Moon-soo's "quiet fire" in contrast with Lee's "fast and consuming" fire.

    Shamanism has seen a revival in South Korea in recent years, but the folk religion has also come under the spotlight for the wrong reasons. Ousted President Yoon for instance reportedly turned to a controversial shaman, who is under investigation for corruption, for political advice.

  14. Who is Lee Jun-seok?

    Lee Jun-seok, dressed in a white-collared shirt, holds a microphone as he appeals for public at Gyeongui Line Forest Park in Seoul on 30 MayGetty Images

    Lee Jun-seok, the youngest of the five candidates running for president on Tuesday, has been especially popular with many young men for his anti-feminist views.

    Last week, the 40-year-old drew swift outrage over a sexually explicit comment made during a presidential debate, in which he asked if "sticking chopsticks in women's genitals or some place like that" is misogynistic.

    Lee is a Harvard graduate who at one point served as the youngest ever chair of former President Yoon Suk Yeol's People Power Party. He broke away to found the Reform Party in January last year.

  15. The legal cloud over Lee Jae-myung's candidacy

    Lee Jae-myung delivers a public statement on the impeachment motion against acting president Han Duck-soo at the National Assembly in Seoul on 27 December, 2024.Getty Images

    Presidential frontrunner Lee Jae-myung faces several criminal charges for which trials have been postponed until after the presidential election.

    Among them are allegations that he has violated election laws by denying his ties with someone at the centre of a land corruption scandal in 2021. He has also been charged with forcing a witness to give false testimony during a 2019 trial.

    These cases have cast doubt on Lee's candidacy.

    If he is convicted, Lee could be asked to step down if he wins the election, according to The Chosun Daily. His Democratic Party maintains that the trials must be suspended if he becomes president.

  16. Watch: To vote or not to vote? South Korea’s 'dilemma' election

    In South Korea's presidential election, the question is more about who people don't want to see in office, rather than who they do, BBC Korea's Rachel Lee reports.

    She takes to the streets of Seoul to ask of the public if they're planning to vote - see their responses below.

  17. Who is Kim Moon-soo?

    Kim Moon-soo speaking into a microphone while holding his other hand up. He is wearing round glasses and standing in front of a red background.Getty Images

    The ruling People Power Party candidate Kim Moon-soo may be the second-most popular candidate this election, but opinion polls suggest that he might still be a long way from garnering the same level of as Democratic Party frontrunner Lee Jae-myung.

    A former labour activist during the dictatorship of the '70s and '80s, he was arrested and sentenced to more than two years in prison for leading anti-state protests.

    In the '90s he started his political career in the conservative camp, and has since steadily climbed the ranks in the People Power Party.

    He was appointed as labour minister in Yoon Suk Yeol's government in 2024.

    Kim's ascent to the ticket has proven controversial to his own party .

    At one point, Kim's nomination was cancelled by the party - its leadership had tried to replace him with former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, whom they saw as a more competitive candidate.

    Kim decried it as a "political coup" and the party ultimately decided to stick with him.

  18. 'What we need most is stability', voter tells BBC

    South Korean voters Kwon Soon-oh, wearing a beige hat and vest, smiles at the camera.BBC / Rachel Lee

    Kwon Soon-oh voted in Seoul

    Our BBC colleagues have been speaking to Kwon Soon-oh, who voted this morning in Seoul.

    Here's what she told us about how she decided on her vote:

    "I was contemplating until the moment I voted.

    It was really hard to make up my mind. I could have voted early, but I wasn’t ready yet.

    We're living in a very unstable time, and what we need most is stability. I truly hope the next leader focuses on uniting people instead of causing more division.

    When society is polarized, it’s hard to get anything meaningful done. Everything good starts with harmony.

    I’ve met many people who said they wouldn’t vote this time because the decision is so difficult. I still believe it's especially important to vote in moments like this.

    But at the same time, I understand those who feel too unsure to make that choice right now."

  19. Record number of voters ed

    A close-up shot of a hand casting a ballot paper into a box.Reuters

    According to South Korea's National Election Commission (NEC), a record 44,391,871 people - including 258,254 overseas voters - are ed for the country's 21st presidential election.

    That's 194,179 more eligible voters than in the 2022 presidential election.

    Despite South Korea's declining population, the number of eligible voters continues to grow, largely due to an aging population. In this election, the largest age group is voters in their 50s, totalling 8,683,369, or 19.6%.

    They're followed by those in their 60s (17.7%), 40s (17.2%) and 70s and older (15.4%).