South Korea Sets June 3 Vote After Yoon's Removal

Post by: Bandan Preet

Photo: Reuters

South Korea has officially set June 3 as the date for a special presidential election after President Yoon Suk Yeol was removed from office last week. Many people are now announcing they want to run for the country’s top job.

President Yoon was removed on Friday by the Constitutional Court because he broke the law. In December, he made a sudden decision to declare martial law and even sent troops to stop Parliament. This shocked the nation and created a political crisis in South Korea. Because of this, the country must now elect a new leader within 60 days.

Stay informed with the latest news. Follow DXB News Network on WhatsApp Channel  

The sudden leadership change has caused problems for the government. It has made it harder for South Korea to talk with U.S. President Donald Trump’s government, especially during a time when the U.S. is increasing trade tariffs and South Korea’s economy is slowing down.

Acting President Han Duck-soo said during a meeting on Tuesday that the election would be held on June 3. He said this gives political parties enough time to prepare.

One of the first people to say they will run is Kim Moon-soo, who was Yoon’s Labour Minister. He resigned from his job on Tuesday to start his campaign. Even though he is not officially part of Yoon’s People Power Party (PPP) right now, Kim is doing better in polls than other conservative candidates.

Kim told reporters, “I resigned because people want me to run. The country is going through a tough time, and I feel responsible to help fix it.” He also said the economy is struggling and many people are suffering. “All politicians and citizens should come together to help the country move forward,” he added.

Another person who plans to run is Ahn Cheol-soo, a PPP lawmaker. He was the first in the party to vote for Yoon’s impeachment. Ahn said on Tuesday that he wants to become president because he is “more honest than anyone else.” He also promised to focus on technology and artificial intelligence to help the economy grow and stand up to U.S. trade policies.

Ahn has run for president three times before. In 2017, he got over 21% of the vote, but in the other two elections, he dropped out and supported other candidates. Right now, his support in the polls is too low to show up in most surveys.

Both Kim and Ahn will face a lot of competition. Many conservative candidates want to win back trust after the party faced two presidential impeachments in a row. The first was in 2017 when conservative Park Geun-hye was removed and later sent to prison for corruption.

On the liberal side, Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party, is currently the top choice. He almost won the last election in 2022, losing to Yoon by a very small margin. Lee is expected to step down as party leader and announce his candidacy later this week.

However, Lee is also facing legal troubles. He is going through several court cases, including accusations of bribery and breaking election laws.

Despite that, a Gallup poll released last Friday showed 34% of people support Lee to be the next president. Kim got 9%, former PPP leader Han Dong-hoon got 5%, Daegu’s mayor Hong Joon-pyo got 4%, and Seoul’s mayor Oh Se-hoon got 2%.

Former President Yoon may also go to court. He is facing criminal charges for trying to use the army to stop lawmakers. His trial will begin on April 14.

After Yoon was impeached, his temporary replacement, Han Duck-soo, was also impeached by Parliament. However, the Constitutional Court overturned that decision, so Han is staying on as acting president until the election.

This election is very important. It could change how South Korea deals with both its problems and its relationships with other countries, especially the United States.

#trending #latest #SouthKoreaElection #YoonImpeachment #June3Vote #PresidentialElection2025 #KimMoonSoo #AhnCheolSoo #LeeJaeMyung #KoreaPolitics #SnapElection #PoliticalNews #headlines #topstories #globalUpdate #dxbnewsnetwork #dxbnews #dxbdnn #dxbnewsnetworkdnn #bestnewschanneldubai #bestnewschannelUAE #bestnewschannelabudhabi #bestnewschannelajman #bestnewschannelofdubai #popularnewschanneldubai