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2002 South Korean presidential election

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FieldValue
countryRepublic of Korea
flag_year1997
typepresidential
previous_election1997 South Korean presidential election
previous_year1997
next_election2007 South Korean presidential election
next_year2007
turnout70.83% ( 9.82pp)
election_date19 December 2002
image1Roh Moo-hyun presidential portrait.jpg
nominee1**Roh Moo-hyun**
party1Millennium Democratic Party
popular_vote1**12,014,277**
percentage1**48.91%**
image2Lee Hoi-chang (2010) (cropped).jpg
nominee2Lee Hoi-chang
party2Grand National Party
color2
popular_vote211,443,297
percentage246.59%
map{{Switcher
titlePresident
before_electionKim Dae-jung
before_partyIndependent (politician)
after_electionRoh Moo-hyun
after_partyMillennium Democratic Party

| [[File:2002 Republic of Korea Presidential Election, Municipal-level divisions.svg|300px]] | Results by municipal-level divisions | [[File:2002 Republic of Korea Presidential Election, Provincial-level divisions.svg|300px]] | Results by provincial-level divisions

Presidential elections were held in South Korea on 19 December 2002. The result was a victory for Roh Moo-Hyun of the ruling Millennium Democratic Party, who defeated Lee Hoi-chang of the Grand National Party by just over half a million votes.

Background

Main article: Presidential elections in South Korea#Procedure (1987–present)

President Kim Dae-jung's National Congress for New Politics (NCNP) re-branded itself to Millennium Democratic Party (MDP) in 2000, but was struggling as it had been defeated by the Grand National Party (GNP) in both the 2000 legislative election and the 2002 local elections. GNP's then leader and probable presidential nominee Lee Hoi-chang was polling higher than any MDP candidates.

Primaries

Millennium Democratic Party

For the first time in South Korean history, the Democratic Party nominated its presidential candidate through open primaries.

At the beginning of the primaries, Rhee In-je, the 3-term congressman who ran against President Kim Dae-jung in 1997 but afterwards joined the ruling party, led the other candidates by a considerable margin in every poll. However, fringe candidate Roh Moo-hyun rose to prominence after winning the Gwangju contest, eventually winning his party's nomination and then the presidential election.

Candidates

  • Roh Moo-hyun, former Member of National Assembly from Busan
  • Lee In-je, former Governor of Gyeonggi
  • Chung Dong-young, Member of National Assembly from North Jeolla
  • Kim Joong-kwon, former Member of National Assembly from North Gyeongsang
  • Han Hwa-gap, former Member of National Assembly from South Jeolla
  • Yu Jong-geun, Governor of North Jeolla
  • Kim Geun-tae, Member of National Assembly from Seoul

Results

ContestRoh
Moo-hyunChung
Dong-youngLee
In-jeKim
Joong-kwonHan
Hwa-gapYu
Jong-geunKim
Geun-taeVotes%Votes%Votes%Votes%Votes%Votes%Votes%**Total**
Jeju
9 March12518.611016.417225.6558.2Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**175**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**26.1**182.7162.4
Ulsan
10 MarchDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**298**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**29.4**656.422221.928127.811611.5202.0101.0
Gwangju
16 MarchDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**595**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**37.9**543.449131.31489.428017.9
Daejeon
17 March21916.5544.1Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**894**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**67.5**816.1775.8
South Chungcheong
23 March27714.2392.0Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**1,432**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**73.7**19610.1
Gangwon
24 MarchDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**630**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**42.5**714.862342.015910.7
South Gyeongsang
30 MarchDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**1,713**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**72.2**1918.146819.7
North Jeolla
31 MarchDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**756**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**34.3**73833.571032.2
Daegu
5 AprilDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**1,137**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**62.3**1819.950627.7
Incheon
6 AprilDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**1,022**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**51.9**1316.781641.4
North Gyeongsang
7 AprilDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**1,246**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**59.4**1838.766831.9
North Chungcheong
13 April38732.1836.9Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**734**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**61.0**
South Jeolla
14 AprilDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**1,297**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**62.0**34016.345421.7
Busan
20 AprilDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**1,328**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**62.5**79637.5
Gyeonggi
21 April1,19145.5Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**1,426**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**54.5**
Internet voting
26 AprilDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**1,423**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**81.3**32718.7
Seoul
27 AprilDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**3,924**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**66.5**1,97833.5
Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**17,577**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2000)}}"**72.2**6,76727.8WithdrewWithdrewWithdrewWithdrewWithdrew

Grand National Party

Candidates

  • Lee Hoi-chang, former Prime Minister
  • Choi Byung-ryul, Member of the National Assembly from Seoul
  • Lee Bu-young, Member of the National Assembly from Seoul
  • Lee Sang-hee, former Minister of Science and Technology

Results

ContestLee
Hoi-changChoi
Byung-ryulLee
Bu-youngLee
Sang-heeVotes%Votes%Votes%Votes%**Total**
Incheon
13 AprilGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"795.620114.3100.7
Ulsan
18 AprilGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"20627.2739.7314.1
Jeju
20 AprilGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"6513.24812.1182.2
Gangwon
23 AprilGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"1019.1716.4444.0
North Gyeongsang and Daegu
24 AprilGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"42711.41333.5541.4
North Jeolla
27 AprilGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"11712.627829.9313.3
South Gyeongsang and Busan
28 AprilGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"93422.61974.81032.5
South Chungcheong and Daejeon
30 AprilGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"1537.81246.3452.3
South Jeolla and Gwangju
2 MayGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"36817.951224.9673.3
Gyeonggi
4 MayGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"42412.348614.1812.3
North Chungcheong
7 MayGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"15218.6607.3151.8
Seoul
9 MayGrand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"1,66834.574315.31092.3
Grand National Party (1997)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"4,69418.32,92611.46082.4

Democratic Labor Party

Labor activist Kwon Young-ghil of the Democratic Labor Party was nominated for president.

Campaign

Although corruption scandals marred the incumbent government, Lee Hoi-chang's campaign suffered from the wave of Anti-American sentiment in Korea generated by the Yangju highway incident. Public opinion of Lee, who was widely seen as being both pro-U.S. and the preferred candidate of the George W. Bush administration in Washington, D.C., suffered. After losing to Roh by 2% in the December 2002 elections, Lee subsequently announced his retirement from politics.

Roh-Chung coalition

Chung Mong-joon, the 3-term independent congressman from Ulsan and son of Hyundai founder Chung Ju-yung, became so popular that he began appearing on polls for presidential election after he, as the president of the Korean Football Association, was credited for winning the right to host 2002 FIFA World Cup in Korea.

Chung officially launched his presidential campaign in September, and in many polls beat Roh and came close to beating Lee. Many Democratic politicians that weren't happy with Roh's nomination joined Chung's campaign. However, when it seemed clear that if both Roh and Chung ran, Lee would win easily. The two sides decided to combine forces, instead of competing against each other.

The two sides agreed on conducting two polls, each by different polling companies, where the winner would run as the unified candidate. The winner had to win both polls, or a second round had to occur.

So the two poll was conducted on 24 November, but only one validated. The other one was invalidated, as the two sides had agreed that any poll with Lee Hoi-chang polling less than 30.4% must be invalidated, since there could be a chance that Lee's supporters were attempting to manipulate the results by responding with an untrue answer.

The only poll that was validated was the one conducted by the Research and Research, and it was won by Roh.

Consequently, Chung withdrew his candidacy and endorsed Roh.

CandidateResearch and Research Poll# of polls won
Roh46.8%1
Chung42.2%0
Lee32.1%-

However, Chung later broke his pledge on the night before the election, when he felt that Roh broke the promise to include Chung in for policy decisions and surrounded himself only with Democrats. Chung announced less than eight hours before the election that he was withdrawing his support for Roh and urged people to vote their conscience, but Roh won anyway.

Results

대한민국의 종교정당}}|votes5=51104

By province and city

Province/CityRoh Moo-hyunLee Hoi-changKwon Young-ghilLee Han-dongKim Gil-sooKim Yeong-gyuDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}"Grand National Party (1997)}}"Democratic Labor Party (South Korea)}}"Others}}"Others}}"Socialist Party (South Korea)}}"Votes%Votes%Votes%Votes%Votes%Votes%
SeoulDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**2,792,957**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**51.30**2,447,37644.96179,7903.3012,7240.236,4370.124,7060.09
Busan587,94629.86Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**1,314,274**Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**66.75**61,2813.112,1480.112,0640.101,3800.07
Daegu240,74518.68Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**1,002,164**Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**77.75**42,1743.271,6990.131,3170.108100.06
IncheonDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**611,766**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**49.83**547,20544.5761,6555.023,6000.291,9780.161,6120.13
GwangjuDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**715,182**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**95.18**26,8693.587,2430.968030.111,0140.133050.04
DaejeonDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**369,046**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**55.18**266,76039.8829,7284.441,1570.171,4080.217470.11
Ulsan178,58435.27Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**267,737**Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**52.88**57,78611.419970.207160.145020.10
GyeonggiDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**2,430,193**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**50.65**2,120,19144.19209,3464.3626,0720.548,0850.174,1190.09
Gangwon316,72241.51Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**400,405**Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**52.48**38,7225.083,4060.452,7130.369690.13
North ChungcheongDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**365,623**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**50.42**311,04442.8941,7315.753,2050.442,6100.369490.13
South ChungcheongDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**474,531**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**52.16**375,11041.2349,5795.454,9730.554,3220.481,3030.14
North JeollaDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**966,053**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**91.59**65,3346.1914,9041.412,5050.245,1870.498170.08
South JeollaDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**1,070,506**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**93.39**53,0744.6312,2151.072,8300.256,7070.599880.09
North Gyeongsang311,35821.65Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**1,056,446**Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**73.47**62,5224.353,3320.232,9360.201,3440.09
South Gyeongsang434,64227.08Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**1,083,564**Grand National Party (1997)}}; color:white;"**67.52**79,8534.982,8320.182,6290.161,2240.08
JejuDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**148,423**Democratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"**56.05**105,74439.938,6193.257440.289810.372880.11
TotalDemocratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"12,014,277Democratic Party (South Korea, 2005)}}; color:white;"48.9111,443,29746.59957,1483.9074,0270.3051,1040.2122,0630.09
Source: [National Election Commission](http://info.nec.go.kr/)

References

References

  1. "Elections: South Korea Presidential Dec 19 2002".
  2. "donga.com[정치:한나라당 경선]".
  3. link. (2002-09-09)
  4. (December 2012). "U.S.-Korea Relations: Trials, Tribulations, Threats, Tirades". Comparative Connections—An E-Journal on East Asian Bilateral Relations.
  5. link. (2002-09-08). [[The Dong-A Ilbo]]
  6. {{Citation. nozzang. (2008-06-13). link. (February 2022)
  7. "정몽준, 자서전서 "노무현 전 대통령 지지 철회 이유는…"".
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