South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s left-leaning ruling party won an absolute majority in parliamentary elections, according to provisional results released Thursday.
The Democratic Party and its satellite party won 180 out of 300 parliamentary seats, up from the current 120, according to the National Election Commission.
Meanwhile, the conservative opposition coalition won 103 seats.
The win marked the Democratic Party’s first landslide victory in 12 years, spurred by a spike in presidential approval ratings over the administration’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
Wednesday’s parliamentary election saw the highest voter turnout since 1992, at a rate of 66.2%.Moon’s party was not tipped to win prior to the outbreak, due to concerns over a series of scandals, slow economic growth and dissatisfaction over his management of the country’s relationship with North Korea.
Read more via The New York Times
