The Voice News: Lee Jae-myung, the candidate from South Korea’s Democratic Party, has been elected as the country’s next president after defeating ruling party candidate and former cabinet member Kim Moon-sook. His path to the presidency was fraught with legal troubles and political controversies, especially following a dramatic constitutional crisis on December 3 last year.
At that time, multiple lawsuits, corruption allegations, and investigations into abuse of power had nearly disqualified Lee’s candidacy. However, an unexpected turn of events—the failed attempt by then-President Yoon Suk-yeol to impose martial law—shifted the political landscape in Lee’s favor.
Six months later, the South Korean people decisively voted for Lee, a liberal Democrat who began his life as a factory worker and rose to hold the nation’s highest office. Opinion polls had already indicated Lee’s lead prior to the election. When his main rival conceded defeat early on election day, Lee’s path to the presidency became clear.
From Outsider to President
Lee Jae-myung, who came from a poor family, has long been a polarizing figure in South Korean politics due to his radical political stance. Dr. Lee Jun-han, a professor of political science and international relations at Incheon National University, told the BBC that Lee’s life has been filled with ups and downs and that many of his actions sparked controversy.
“He often pursued progressive reform initiatives,” Dr. Lee said, pointing out Lee’s 2022 campaign promise of universal basic income, which challenged South Korea’s power structure. “People either strongly supported or deeply distrusted him.”
Despite being considered an outsider, Lee managed to carve out a reputation that didn’t align with the traditional Democratic Party mold. However, this time, his campaign took a more centrist tone, emphasizing the importance of big business and South Korea’s ties with the United States—particularly ahead of upcoming trade negotiations with Donald Trump. In a recent memoir, Lee reflected on his difficult childhood.
Born in 1963 in a mountainous village in Andong, Gyeongbuk Province, Lee was the fifth among five brothers and two sisters. Due to his family’s financial hardship, he dropped out of secondary school to work illegally in a factory. There, he suffered a severe hand injury when it was crushed by a machine.
Eventually, Lee was granted permission to take school and university entrance exams. He completed secondary and higher secondary school in 1978 and 1980 respectively, studied law, and passed the bar exam in 1986. In 1992, he married Kim Hye-kyung, and the couple has two children.
After nearly two decades as a human rights lawyer, Lee entered politics in 2005, joining the socially liberal Uri Party—then the ruling party and a predecessor of the Democratic Party. Despite facing mockery for his impoverished past, Lee remained popular among the working class and the underprivileged. In 2010, he was elected mayor of Seongnam and implemented several free welfare programs. In 2018, he became governor of the greater Gyeonggi Province.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lee clashed with the central government over his push for universal aid, gaining national attention. He was chosen as the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate for the 2022 election but narrowly lost by just 0.76% of the vote. Less than a year later, in August 2022, he was elected as party leader.
According to Professor Lee, Lee adopted a more cautious approach after that loss, shifting away from extremism toward safer strategies. Still, controversies followed him—such as a 2004 drunk driving incident, family disputes, and a 2018 extramarital affair allegation. In conservative South Korea, such scandals can significantly damage a political career.
Legal Troubles and Scandals
Lee’s ambitions were further complicated by ongoing legal issues. One major case involved allegations of corruption and embezzlement in a land development project from 2023. Another stemmed from the 2022 presidential debates, where Lee denied personally knowing Kim Moon-ki, a key figure in the scandal who later died by suicide.
Lee was accused of deliberately providing false information—an electoral offense under South Korean law. In November 2024, a court found him guilty and gave him a one-year suspended sentence. However, a higher court acquitted him in March, only for the Supreme Court to overturn that acquittal.
Crisis Turned Opportunity
On December 3 of last year, then-President Yoon abruptly declared martial law, citing threats from anti-state forces and North Korea sympathizers. This led to a dramatic political upheaval.
Within an hour, Lee appeared live online, urging citizens to gather outside the National Assembly. Thousands responded. Clashes broke out with police, and soldiers blocked public entry. Lawmakers scaled fences to enter the building—Lee among them.
The next day, the Democratic Party introduced an impeachment motion against Yoon, which the Constitutional Court accepted unanimously on April 4, 2025. On April 9, Lee stepped down as party leader to run for president and secured his party’s nomination in a primary on April 27 with overwhelming support.
Yoon’s failed imposition of martial law sparked a constitutional crisis that led to his political downfall and the collapse of his People Power Party (PPP). Amid the chaos, only a few politicians managed to capitalize on the moment—and Lee Jae-myung emerged as the most successful among them.
Now the President of South Korea, Lee’s future still hangs in the balance. The courts had paused legal proceedings during the election, but he could still be convicted while in office. If that happens, South Korea could be facing yet another political crisis.