Name: Opposition wins South Korean election after months of martial law chaos | BBC News
Uploaded: 2025-06-04T21:01:30.000Z
Duration: 5 min 12 s
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In the last few moments, we have received some breaking news from South Korea.

Adverbs of degree

We've just received the official final results in South Korea's snap presidential election.

And as we've been reporting, the liberal candidate Lee Jae-myung has won the presidency at the highest turnout for decades.

The election was called after the previous president, Yoon Soo-gyul, was impeached for attempting to impose martial law.

The new president's inauguration is expected on Wednesday.

Speaking in the last hour, Mr. Lee said he would do his utmost not to disappoint the expectations of voters and would work from day one to fix the economy and ensure there are no more coup attempts.

The first mission that you have granted me was to overcome the insurrection and not to threaten the civilians with the weapons that shouldn't be used against the people.

And secondly, I will recover the economy and recover the people's lives.

The defeated candidate, Kim Moon-soo, conceded shortly after Mr. Lee's victory speech.

In a short address, he thanked his supporters and wished Mr. Lee luck. Take a listen.

Honorable South Korean people, I will accept the decision made by the South Korean people and I'd like to congratulate [the] newly elected candidate, Mr. Lee.

And I will not forget all the support from the people of South Korea, and I also like to thank my colleagues from the party for their hard work.

South Korea has been constantly moving forward, despite the threat and difficult times.

I also like to sincerely thank the South Korean people for their overflowing support for someone who is not good enough.

Well, let's take a closer look at how the day unfolded and what it now means for South Korea.

Our Seoul correspondent, Jeanne McKenzie, has more.

As the exit polls came in, the Lee camp erupted.

After a chaotic six months that nearly saw South Korea back under military rule, power is changing hands.

This candidate campaigned on one very clear promise that he was going to ensure martial law can never happen again.

And it seems tonight that this is what South Koreans have decisively chosen, that they have once again rejected what happened on that night back in December when the country was so nearly brought back under military rule.

For the last six months, the Korean people have overcome the cold winter and have come together.

The celebration started before the polls even closed.

Lee, long considered a divisive character who has criminal charges against him, pulled in people with all shades of politics, desperate to steer South Korea back onto stable ground.

As they cast their ballots, people felt the weight of their vote.

For Hyo-hun, today was about building a future for his two-year-old daughter.

We need to stop the martial law from happening again in the future.

I hope after today, our president will better serve the Korean people and stabilize the country so we don't have to worry anymore.

Before Lee can fix the country, he must first face urgent challenges abroad.

There are existential negotiations to be had with President Trump, not just about tariffs, but South Korea's security.

There are thousands of troops stationed here, but Trump is reportedly considering removing some of them.

Seoul is hoping to use these ships as a bargaining chip.

This is the largest shipyard in the world.

They build 40 to 50 ships here every year, from warships to gas tankers and these huge commercial vessels.

In contrast, US shipbuilding is in decline.

Its naval fleet now pales in comparison to China's.

And Korea is hoping to step in to build and repair America's warships.

The shipbuilding is the strongest part to negotiate the tariffs with the United States government.

Already, they've gathered to welcome their president, but this honeymoon will barely last the night.

Lee must take office immediately, and Koreans are trusting him to steer the country responsibly.