BREAKING: Han Duck-Soo Withdraws From South Korea Presidential Race, Clearing Path for Rival Kim Moon-soo
South Korea’s former prime minister and acting president Han Duck-soo on Sunday ended his brief bid for the presidency, withdrawing from the conservative People Power Party’s (PPP) nomination race just days before the country’s snap election.
His withdrawal followed a week of mounting internal discord and unsuccessful attempts to unite the conservative camp. The party confirmed Kim Moon-soo as its official nominee following a vote by members on Saturday, quashing speculation that Han might replace him due to his broader public appeal.
“I humbly accept everything,” Han said in a short statement on Sunday, adding that he hoped Kim would succeed in the 3 June poll.
Han had only recently entered the race, disrupting an earlier consensus around Kim, and his late candidacy sowed division within the party. Talks between the two men aimed at forging a united conservative front collapsed during the week.
Kim formally registered as the PPP’s presidential candidate on Sunday morning, positioning himself as the conservative challenger to opposition Democratic Party frontrunner Lee Jae-myung.
The snap election was called following the dramatic impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol in April, after he imposed a brief and highly controversial period of martial law in December, which lawmakers later ruled to be a gross violation of his presidential duties.
Lee Jae-myung, a former governor and long-time rival of the conservative bloc, currently leads in the polls and is widely expected to benefit from the fractured state of the right-wing vote.
Kim, who was selected during a party convention the previous week, had resisted mounting pressure to yield his position to Han, despite the latter’s perceived electability. Han, meanwhile, initially declined to enter the nomination process while still serving as prime minister, only reversing course days before the internal vote.With Han’s exit, the PPP is hoping to consolidate conservative support behind Kim and avoid a splintered electorate that could hand victory to Lee.