As we wait for the results, here's a quick recap of what we have been covering today as South Koreans cast their ballots for the country's next leader.

• More than 20% of votes have been counted so far and they point to a Lee Jae-myung presidency. Several exit polls suggest the Democratic Party candidate will win about 50% of the votes
• Lee's party said the polls show South Koreans have made a "fiery judgement against the insurrection regime", while their main rival, the conservative People Power Party, say they are "shocked"
• Across the country, crowds have gathered outdoors before huge screens awaiting the results telecasts. In downtown Seoul, Lee's ers and anti-Lee protesters have also rallied together
• Polling spanned 14 hours as voter turnout reached the highest in nearly 30 years, at 79.4%

We're expecting the results in about an hour or so.

During the last presidential election in 2022, the results weren't called until 03:22 local time, and Lee lost to former President Yoon by a razor-thin margin of 0.74% - the slimmest in South Korea's electoral victory.

We've just had another update as the vote count continues.

As of 22:48 local time (13:48 GMT), 20.8% of the votes have been counted in this election.

Lee Jae-myung is leading with 47.7% of the votes, followed by Kim Moon-soo with 44.1%.

It's been almost three hours since polls closed and about 10% of the votes have been counted so far, according to local media reports.

The final result is expected to come in by about midnight local time (16:00 BST).

Image source, Getty Images

Lee Jun-seok of the New Reform Party, who is projected to finish third in this election according to exit polls, has conceded.

A t exit poll from broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS suggests he received 7.7% of the votes, with strong from men under the age of 30.

"The exit polls suggest Lee Jae-myung will be elected as the president, and I expect him to make careful and accurate decisions on national unity and the economy," he said in his concession speech, adding that his party will "continue to fulfil its role as an opposition party".

Yuna Ku
BBC Korean Service

Image source, BBC/Yuna Ku

An anti-Lee Jae-myung rally is taking place in downtown Gwanghwamun, directly across the street from a pro-Lee demonstration.

About a hundred people, mostly older citizens with a handful of younger voters, have gathered. They are calmly waving national flags and listening attentively to the speaker at the front.

Jeon Jae-hee, a 33-year-old protester, says he doesn’t trust the exit poll results and claims fraud might be at play.

“Those numbers are just too concentrated - it doesn’t make sense,” he said.

There is so far no evidence to suggest any sign of fraud.

Jeon also voiced his concerns about a potential concentration of power if Lee becomes president, as the current parliament is dominated by his Democratic Party. He said he planned to resist in various ways.

“But of course, only within legal limits,” he emphasised.

Kim Jung-ok, 67, was also in attendance. She said she was disappointed by the exit poll results, but remained hopeful that presidential candidate Kim Moon-soo could still win.

“I believe God is testing us, but I’m confident we’ll overcome this,” she said.

Here are more scenes from the two main parties' headquarters as exit polls project a strong lead for the Democratic Party's Lee Jae-myung. The atmosphere on both sides could not be more different.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, EPA

Woongbee Lee
Editor, BBC Korean

Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party enjoyed a significant lead among female voters, with more than 55% casting their ballots for him, according to a t exit poll from local broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS.

In comparison, some 39.2% of women voted for Kim Moon-soo of the conservative People Power Party.

Among male voters, 48.3% were projected to vote for Lee and 39.4% for Kim.

Lee Jun-seok, who is projected to place third, saw noticeably stronger among men - he is expected to win 11.1% of the male vote, compared to just 4.3% from women.

for Lee Jae-myung is particularly strong among voters in their 40s and 50s, the exit polls show, while voters aged 70 and above show a clear preference for Kim.

Juna Moon
BBC Korean

Image source, SBS

If you're tuning into local TV station SBS in South Korea now you might be wondering if you're watching an episode of Squid Game, or the local election.

The answer of course, is both.

SBS, which is known to come up with attention grabbing CGI effects each election season, is currently airing a segment where both main presidential candidates performance are being shown a la Squid Game.

Both donning tracksuits in their parties colours, Lee Jae-myung and Kim Moon-soo are seen running for their lives in the "Red Light, Green Light" game, with the winner being the candidate with the greatest number of votes. They're also making sure to stand absolutely still when the white bear Tupyoro - SBS's election mascot - turns its head, just like the iconic doll from Squid Game.

When they're not running for their lives, they're driving flashy sports cars or playing tug of war.

Image source, SBS

There's no official result yet, but what is clear is that South Korea's election coverage is one that is hugely entertaining.

Yuna Ku
BBC Korean Service

As soon as the exit poll result was announced, a thunderous roar from hundreds gathered at Gwanghwamun square rang out.

“I was so happy when the (exit poll) result was announced," said 54-year-old Woo Sun-mi, who was among the crowd.

However, she says she is not celebrating just yet, adding that she would “wait for the final result to come out… I’ll be staying here through the night until the clear winner is announced".

Kang Min-seo, a 20-year-old university student, is also hopeful that a Lee victory is in sight.

“If Lee Jae-myung becomes president, I hope that he can revive the economy... and punish all those involved in the martial law incident.”

With the exit polls showing a strong lead for Lee Jae-myung, his Democratic Party's leader Park Chan-dae says South Koreans made a "fiery judgement against the insurrection regime".

Meanwhile the co-chair of the conservative People Power Party, Na Kyung-won, says he is "shocked" by the polls.

Shaimaa Khalil
in Seoul

Ballot boxes have now arrived here at a counting center at a gymnasium inside Seoul National University.

There’s a tense quiet here as ballot counters will shortly begin the process of counting.

Every few minutes another election worker comes in with a big white ballot box, which are arranged by district.

Counters have been given instructions to exercise utmost caution. There's no room for mistakes, officials say.

There are over 200 ballot-counting centres across the country, and in the coming hours they’ll tally the votes to come up with a final result.

For now, though, the Democratic Party's Lee Jae-myung and his ers have reason to be optimistic about the result.

Image source, Getty Images

As we reported earlier, exit polls are projecting that South Korea's next president will be Lee Jae-myung - a dramatic reversal of fortunes for the 61-year-old, who at the time of Yoon's martial law declaration stood convicted of making false statements during his last presidential campaign in 2022.

Before the events of 3 December 2024, the Democratic Party candidate's path to South Korea's presidency was littered with obstacles.

Ongoing legal cases, investigations for corruption and allegations of abusing power all looked set to derail the former opposition leader's second presidential bid.

Those charges still cast a long shadow over Lee - and it is still unclear how these legal hurdles could affect him taking on the presidency, if he does indeed win today's election.

Read more about Lee's rags-to-riches origin story and why it has made him such a divisive figure in South Korea.

Jean Mackenzie
Seoul correspondent

Image source, BBC/Hosu Lee

As the exit polls came in here at Lee Jae-myung headquarters, all his Democratic Party stood up and began cheering.

Most polls are predicting Lee will win more than 50% of the vote, an absolute landslide victory. Even though one MP joked he would have preferred it to be 55%, everyone here is obviously delighted with this result.

Lee campaigned on one very clear promise: that he would make sure martial could never happen again. South Koreans, it seems, have decisively chosen this. They have once again rejected what happened on that night back in December, when the country was so nearly brought back under military rule.

“I am so happy and thrilled. It’s not just me — the whole country is,” one democratic member of parliament, Wi Seong-gon, told me. “We have gained hope again. For the last six months the Korean people have overcome the cold winter on the asphalt and have come together in power.”

Voting turnout hit 78.8% today, the highest in nearly 30 years.

The highest ever turnout in South Korea's history was 89.2% in 1987, when the country first introduced a direct presidential election system following nationwide pro-democracy protests.

Voter turnout then fell to 81.9% in 1992, and 80.7% in 1997.

It has stood at about 77% for the last two presidential elections.

As results from exit polls come in, here's a quick recap on the five men vying for South Korea's top job.

The polls are projecting that Lee Jae-myung, of the opposition liberal Democratic Party, could be the country's next leader. Lee, who lost to former President Yoon Suk Yeol by a razor-thin margin in 2022, has promised to establish a "Real Republic of Korea" with jobs and a fair society.

Kim Moon-soo, from Yoon's conservative People Power Party, is trailing Lee. Kim, a former labour minister, has positioned himself as a president for the economy, promising the creation of a business-friendly environment and job creation.

Two former candidates - independent Hwang Kyo-ahn and Koo Joo-wha of the Liberty Unification Party - withdrew from the race within a fortnight of each other to back Kim.

Also in the running are Lee Jun-seok of the New Reform Party, who is popular with young men, former rights lawyer Kwon Young-guk of the Democratic Labor Party, and businessmen Song Jin-ho, who is contesting as an independent candidate.

For the first time in 18 years there is no woman running for president.

Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung is projected to win the presidency, according to a t exit poll from local broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS.

The exit poll sees Lee getting 51.7% of the votes, and People Power Party candidate Kim Moon-soo garnering 39.3%.

The third candidate is Reform Party's Lee Jun-seok, who is projected to get 7.7% of the votes.

Another exit poll by the JTBC television network is also projecting a Lee presidency with him winning 50.6% of the vote, versus Kim at 39.4%.

Shaimaa Khalil
in Seoul

We are at the main campus of Seoul National University, where a vote-counting centre has been set up.

At local time 20:00 (12:00 BST), ballot counters stoop up for the national anthem and then took and oath - they are expecting ballot boxes to arrive shortly.

Election commissions officials are giving final instructions to the counters, emphasising that caution must be exercised and that no mistakes can be made.

The polls are now closed after 14 hours of voting.

We expect to see early indications of results in a couple of hours. Stay with us - we'll bring you the latest as we get them.

Rachel Lee
BBC Korean

Image source, BBC / Choi Jung-min

Image consulting is a serious part of presidential campaigns in South Korea.

Consultants - who often sign confidentiality agreements with candidates - advise on everything from fashion and grooming, to tone of voice and speech delivery.

At the 2022 presidential election, Lee Jae-myung - the favourite to win today's election - reportedly spent over ₩86m (£43,000; $62,000) on image consulting during his party’s primary, sparking heated public debate.

Consultant Jung Yeon-ah, who has worked with presidential candidates before, told the BBC the People Power Party candidate Kim Moon-soo had a "bold, assertive image", but could benefit from smiling more.

She said that Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung had cultivated an "adaptable" fashion sense during this campaign, counteracting his "previously harsh image".

Yvette Tan and Yuna Ku
in Seoul

In front of a polling station just minutes away from the presidential office, where former leader Yoon Suk Yeol stood six months ago when he declared martial law, one 80-year-old voter says she still vividly recalls hearing his announcement.

Shin Dong-sook said she was filled with “shock” and couldn’t believe what happened.

“There were so many young people going out on the street, and I was just overwhelmed by the way they came out in force… I felt like they cared more about society than the politicians,” she said, choking back tears.

“People think that old people of my generation, that we just have a conservative mindset, but that’s not true.

“My choice of candidate was clear to me. I think the most important thing to consider when casting your vote is to vote for someone who can improve society and take it in a better direction. That’s really what I hope to see the new president bring.”