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| 2007 Presidential Election
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(LEAD) Opposition conservative Lee Myung-bak elected president
By Yoo Cheong-mo
SEOUL, Dec. 20 (Yonhap) -- Conservative opposition candidate Lee Myung-bak won South Korea's presidential election by a landslide, as voters angered by the incumbent liberal government's economic mismanagement banked on Lee's success as a construction CEO and Seoul mayor while overlooking his possible involvement in financial fraud.
According to the final official tally compiled Thursday by the National Election Commission, Lee of the main opposition Grand National Party (GNP) garnered 48.7 percent support, or 11.49 million votes, about 23 points ahead of his closest contender, Chung Dong-young of the pro-government United New Democratic Party (UNDP), who received 26.1 percent, or 6.17 million votes.
The gap of 5.3 million votes between Lee and his runner-up Chung is the largest in the history of Korean presidential elections.
Right-wing independent Lee Hoi-chang, who had unsuccessfully run for president on the GNP ticket in 1997 and 2002, was third with 15.1 percent of the popular vote. The combined conservative votes earned by the two Lees was about 64 percent, dwarfing the liberal camp's votes.
Minor liberal candidate, Moon Kook-hyun of the Create Korea Party, won 5.8 percent of the votes, with Kwon Young-ghil of the minor Democratic Labor Party having 3 percent and Rhee In-je of the minor Democratic Party 0.7 percent.
"I deeply thank the people for their wholehearted support. It is not my victory. It is a victory of the people. I'll serve the people with humility and a humble attitude," Lee said Wednesday, before his supporters at the GNP headquarters in central Seoul.
"I'll do my utmost to rescue the South Korean economy from its crisis. I'll also work to promote harmony and integration of the divided society."
Chung conceded defeat in a news conference held at the UNDP headquarters in central Seoul. "I'll humbly accept the will of the people," Chung said.
Lee, who celebrated his 66th birthday and 38th wedding anniversary on election day, earned the nickname of "The Bulldozer" for his strong leadership and initiative as CEO of Hyundai Engineering & Construction.
Lee's campaign pledges to double the nation's per capita income to US$40,000, attain 7 percent economic growth, and build a Seoul-Busan waterway appealed strongly to voters. Complying with his conservative opposition Grand National Party's traditional policy lines, Lee's administration is expected to move closer to the White House and toughen up on North Korea, according to political experts.
The office of President Roh Moo-hyun immediately issued a message congratulating Lee Myung-bak on his election as South Korea's 17th president.
"We deliver words of congratulations to Lee Myung-bak. We also send words of consolation to the defeated candidates. We respect the will of the people displayed in the presidential election," said the message issued in the name of Roh's spokesperson, Cheon Ho-seon.
"The presidential office evaluates the fact that the presidential election was conducted fairly. The Participatory Government will faithfully try to hand over the administration to the next president. We will also try our best the last moment to take care of state affairs," said the message.
According to Cheon, Roh is to give a congratulatory call to Lee on Thursday morning and send his chief of staff to the president-elect on Thursday or Friday to invite him to visit the presidential office.
Voter turnout was tallied at a record low of 62.9 percent of 37 million eligible voters, down 7.9 points from the 2002 polls and 17.8 points from the 1997 election, the National Election Commission said, attributing the general voter apathy to excessive smear campaigns over Lee's alleged involvement in a financial scandal, as well as his overwhelming lead throughout the campaign.
Lee's sweeping victory came amid mounting public grievances over skyrocketing property prices, widening economic polarization and rising unemployment under the Roh presidency. Lee will be inaugurated on Feb. 25 to replace Roh.
Since 1987, when the direct presidential election was restored after seven years of authoritarian rule by then President Chun Doo-hwan, a series of close races between rival parties has resulted in presidential candidates winning with support of less than 50 percent.
In the 2002 election, Roh garnered 48.9 percent of the vote, beating rival candidate Lee Hoi-chang, who ran on the GNP ticket, by a margin of merely 2.5 percentage points.
Lee Myung-bak's victory will end a decade of liberal rule, during which Roh and his predecessor Kim Dae-jung engaged in unprecedented reconciliation with North Korea.
GNP headquarters erupted with joy, with party Chairman Kang Jae-sup and other party leaders hugging each other in jubilation and celebration. Hundreds of Lee and GNP supporters gathered around the party headquarters in Yeouido in central Seoul. Hundreds of other supporters of Lee repeatedly chanted "Lee Myung-Bak!" in downtown Seoul, setting off firecrackers, cheering and dancing.
In contrast, the UNDP appeared deeply shocked at the crushing defeat, with its leaders and officials refusing to talk to reporters.
After his inauguration, slated for Feb. 25, Lee will attempt to carry out his so-called "747" campaign pledge, which calls for attaining 7 percent economic growth, increasing per capita income to US$40,000 and making South Korea the seventh-largest economy in the world.
Simultaneously, Lee is set to embark on the construction of a Seoul-Busan waterway project, the president-elect's flagship campaign pledge, while trying to reshape the Roh government's diplomatic and North Korea policies in accordance with his party's conservative policy line.
However, his political ambitions could be short-lived in the face of an upcoming independent counsel probe and parliamentary elections to be held in April.
With Roh set to appoint a special counsel around Jan. 10 to investigate allegations of the president-elect's corruption in accordance with a parliamentary bill ratified on Monday, Lee is expected to face a summons and a criminal investigation by an independent prosecutorial team.
The bill, passed by the pro-government United New Democratic Party (UNDP) and a group of minor parties in the absence of GNP lawmakers, came after Roh and the pro-government parties raised suspicion over the prosecution's recent vindication of Lee in a 2001 financial fraud case. Last week's disclosure of a video has further embarrassed Lee and the GNP. The video shows Lee saying that he established BBK, a now-defunct investment consulting company, in 2000. The company was used the following year by Lee's Korean-American business partner, Kim Kyung-joon, in a case of massive stock fraud.
The bill obliges an independent counsel to launch the probe around Jan. 10 and complete an initial investigation by Feb. 17, shortly before Lee's inauguration.
Depending on the conclusion of the independent counsel, Lee could again be cleared of criminal charges or face indictment.
If the independent counsel fails to find any criminal evidence against Lee, the president-elect will be able to exert extremely powerful leadership over key state and political affairs. According to political pundits, the independent counsel's possible "clean bill of health" for Lee is expected to significantly reinforce the strength of the GNP and accelerate the breakup of the UNDP and other liberal political forces ahead of parliamentary elections slated for April 9.
ycm@yna.co.kr
(END)
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