Park Geun-hye won the presidential race against Moon Jae-in. (75.8% turnout)
In an intense final battle to assume office in the Blue House, it was the conservative Saenuri Party‘s frontrunner Park Geun-hye who eventually claimed victory last night. With a mere 3.6 percent difference in the total poll count against Moon Jae-in, this will come as a blow for the Democratic United Party (DUP), with the likes of software tycoon and former-candidate Ahn Cheol-soo‘s systematically calling for political reform within the Democratic Party.
The 2012 presidential election will also be remembered for many years to come as having one of the highest turnouts, the first to have a winner claim with over 50 percent of the vote count, but more importantly for having elected the republic’s first female president in a predominantly male-driven society.
Park’s family background too is far from ordinary. She is the daughter of dictator Park Chung-hee who is often hailed as having brought riches to the Korean economy, but also remembered for supressing, if not purging any opposition. And Park Geun-hye is no stranger to the Blue House, having acted as First Lady in the years following her mother’s assassination.
In the run-up to December 19th, the Saenuri Party were plagued with allegations of unfair behavior, and attacked live on-air but both seem to have to failed to prevent loyal conservative voters.
Throughout the day of December 19th, the Korean Internet exploded with activity and divided opinions, some welcoming new changes, while others feeling Korean democracy is regressing.
Regional breakdown of votes. (Red: Park, Yellow: Moon)
Generational breakdown of votes (exit polls)
Comments from Nate:
aksq****
Let’s firmly punish the rumor-mongers and the Jongpuks this time. I got shocked after congratulating Park’s win on Facebook at the sight of infected jwajoms in their 20s who were saying crazy stuff like our country’s finished or Park will be just like her dad… As a 20-something myself, I found them pathetic. People with such standard can vote so what’s the point of a high turnout? I wish they raise the minimum voting age limit to 25. It’s ridiculous… Anyway, please keep your promises and become a president who thinks of the people first. Congratulations.
ducl****
Those of you who are busy dissing Park, it is not that only you guys have brains. I am also a supporter of Moon but whether you like it or not, the majority voted for Park. Different thoughts are not wrong thoughts. Let’s acknowledge other opinions, too.
ducl****
The reasons for Moon’s defeat:
1. His perspective on national security.
2. DUP’s yapping mouths.
They brought it onto themselves in the end.
hara****
How would she feel to enter the Blue House again? It is the symbol of power but for her, it is also the place where memories of her deceased parents were buried. For heaven’s sake, please create the second New Community Movement based on your experience as First Lady for 5 years and what you learned from ex-Pres. Park Chung-hee’s view of the economy ahead of his time…
hyzl****
Those who said a high turnout would ‘guarantee’ Moon’s victory. Those who can’t accept the result despite the high turnout. Those who say that the 20s’ participation was too low or even bluntly that the old should die off. Sigh… Why did they think the younger generation would definitely support Moon? We had to make a choice, which isn’t to find the correct answer. You have to accept that ‘different’ doesn’t mean ‘wrong’.
theg****
The industrious older generation who experienced the New Community Movement during the Park Chung-hee regime went out to vote early in the morning. Listen, young people who were born in Korea that was transformed into a developed country by those older people’s sacrifice and Pres. Park’s leadership. You are only bugs who have been gobbling up milk and honey made from blood and sweat of the older generation who sacrificed their life to pass a better life down to their children. If you say bullshit like old people should be deprived of the right to vote or they are senile, you don’t deserve to live in Korea. Listen, young people who insult the Park Chung-hee regime. Old people who experienced his leadership miss it and they lived a normal life without any problem at all. Do you think democracy would’ve worked in the era when you were starving after the War? You haven’t experienced it so what would you know? All we had was our bodies in the middle of nothing. Who industrialized the country, made people industrious with the New Community Movement, provided jobs and food, fostering hope in us? It was Pres. Park Chung-hee. You guys are only pigs who call him a dictator and label him with ungrateful remarks. Do you want to understand that period? Travel the third world countries like Somalia. Try to live there. We lived like that until Pres. Park. Many people were struggling with starvation and living just because they couldn’t die. It was Pres. Park who created it all from nothing. This election result was due to his good deeds. Park Geun-hye benefited from Pres. Park’s good deeds of reviving our people who were dying from hunger. Old people do not hate the Park Chung-hee period like you guys learn from textbooks. Even poet Kim Ji-ha who opposed Pres. Park’s dictatorship say things like that. What is the truth you should search for?
sunl****
DUP: ‘Saenuri Party allegedly built an army of 15 million albas.’
synd****
If you make a comment supporting Park on sites like Daum, they get all red-eyed and mob you. No wonder there is a word like ‘jwajom’. I wanted a new era of politics and was undecided between Park and Moon until the last minute. Many people like me might have turned their back on Moon after getting tired of the DUP’s final negative attacks, their view on North Korea and the jwajoms. DUP was in a good position due to the TV debates and various things but they brought the failure onto themselves. Just like in the parliamentary elections, their strategy failed. Next time, please learn the strategy from Ahn Cheol-soo.
hjh3****
The older generation who lived through the Park Chung-hee period support Park Geun-hye but those who don’t even know anything about dictatorship are incited by the jwajoms and yap about ‘the Dictator’s daughter’ or ‘the Yushin Regime’. Tsk tsk. You have to find the reason for Moon’s defeat from yourselves, not our parents’ generation. Tsk tsk.
hjab****
I realized propaganda is scary. The teens and 20s have been brainwashed to a shocking degree. If you diss Lee Myung-bak and support Moon, you are an enlightened person but if you support Park, it means you suck up to Japan and our country will go under? Where did this logic come from? After a decade of Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun administrations and Saenuri’s mess-up, why do people still support Saenuri? Doesn’t this tell you something? Please learn the cause of defeat first. Our president-elect hasn’t even started anything yet. Please stop with the propaganda and wake up, those so-called progressives.
ffa_****
To be honest, I think Lee Jung-hee is the No. 1 contributor for Park’s win.
kyj7****
Wow, a female president from our country…! Korea has really come a long way.
jukw****
Even if you didn’t support the president-elect, please have the capacity to congratulate, support and criticize her with sharp eyes. Those who say they shouldn’t have voted or our country’s finished, in opposition for the sake of opposition… What do they want to achieve? Tsk tsk.
kimy****
Dictator, dictator… The people who shed tears in his national funeral, the people who lived through his ruling period, they support Park Geun-hye today. They, who lived a supposedly brutal and dark period under the dictator according to some, support the dictator’s daughter and went out to vote early in the morning. However, the young people, who didn’t experience the era and inherited its legacy of wealth, claimed Moon would win if the turnout is high and now they refuse to accept the result, saying they wanna emigrate since our country’s finished. They say it is a national disgrace to have a dictator’s daughter as president. Since the Yushin Regime, this is our first president who won by majority votes and she is overwhelmingly supported by the people who experienced the Yushin period but some people try to deny this.
hara****
Chun Doo-hwan gave her 600 million won when her family was leaving the Blue House because they had no money. Her father ruled the country as a dictator for a long time but doesn’t that rather mean he was that much clean?
gnsl****
Looking around, I see many people who are worried about Park’s presidency and even insult her. Are they going to insult the whole 15 million citizens who voted for her? Once the result’s out, you need to accept that. They seem concerned that she’s a dictator’s daughter but are we living under the authoritarian government from the 70 and 80s? We can vote. We don’t get penalties for speaking up like then. (I can’t be so sure though…) Isn’t it our job to openly criticize and also encourage our government? You don’t like something? If you really dislike some policy or administrative work, you can criticize it! You can express it with your votes later! Stop whining. And some leftists should seriously ponder about why DUP couldn’t seize power this time again, why more people have chosen Park. And Saenuri Party, you guys should know you were given another chance not because you’ve done well. At least attempt to implement your pledges for 5 years.
rnep****
I really want to cut Jeolla-do and paste it in North Korea.
scle****
The politicians, celebrities and other people who support Moon and pledged to do this and that if the turnout is high…will they keep their promises? Ke ke. Park Won-soon to run a marathon in the buff.. Kim Je-dong to buy a drink for everyone he meets.. And someone to give out coffee for free.. Anyway, I guess they will keep their promises? Because they were bitching hard about failed pledges of the president.
moon****
In the meantime, on Byun Hee-jae’s Twitter:
‘If Moon is elected, Park supporters will contemplate how to revive Korea. If Park is elected, Moon supporters will try to overthrow Korea at all costs.’
We are taking different paths but please let’s not forget that our ultimate goal is Korea’s eternal prosperity and progress.
lsbk****
No matter how hard you guys bitch and moan, the 18th president is Park Geun-hye approved by the majority of citizens. Ke.
