Introducing Lee Jae Myung: South Korean Presidential Candidate

April 28, 2025 | 05:03 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Former leader of the Democratic Party Lee Jae Myung leads the nomination of South Korea's presidential candidate on Sunday, April 27, 2025. He is also ahead in various presidential polls as a candidate from the Democratic Party. As cited from Yonhap, he secured 89.77 percent of all the votes in the party's preliminary election, thus avoiding a runoff.

According to the Korea Herald, Lee Jae Myung originally came from Andong, North Gyeongsang. After graduating from elementary school at 12, he moved to Seongnam, Gyeonggi. Due to injury, he was exempted from military service. In 1982, he enrolled in Chung-Ang University Law School on scholarship. He passed the bar exam in 1986 and began practicing as a lawyer in 1989.

He set up an office in Seongnam and worked as a labor rights lawyer. He attributed his decision to the late former President Roh Moo-hyun. His experience in defending labor rights led him to the world of politics.

Political Career

In August 2005, he joined Uri, the now-defunct liberal social party. The party supported his candidacy for mayor of Seongnam in 2006, but he was eliminated. Two years later, he ran for a parliamentary seat in the city but was defeated again. His first political victory came in 2010 when he was elected as the Mayor of Seongnam.

He gained fame for creating a special social welfare program for Seongnam and banning the dog meat trade at Moran Market. It was known as the largest dog meat trading place in South Korea since 1960. With years of political experience, he decided to run for President of South Korea in 2022. However, Lee Jae Myung lost to Yoon Suk Yeol.

Lee Jae Myung has also been involved in legal issues. His arrest was related to an investigation into a construction project and alleged bribery implicating him. Lee Jae Myung was also accused of bribery related to a company suspected of making an illegal transfer of 8 million US dollars to North Korea. Lee denied all allegations, referring to them as political fiction and conspiracy.

Sharisya Kusuma Rahmanda also contributed to the writing of this article

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