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President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol waves his hands while watching vote tallies come in early on March 10. (pool photo)

When his election was confirmed in the early hours of March 10, President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol stated, “I deeply thank you all and the people of Korea for guiding this novice to this point.”

But Yoon himself may arguably be the person most taken by surprise by the outcome of this year’s presidential election.

Yoon is the very person who sent former President Park Geun-hye packing to prison and was thereby chosen to be the prosecutor general under the Moon Jae-in administration. A prosecutor to the bone, he rebelled against the Moon administration during his tenure as the nation’s top prosecutor, quickly rising in popularity as a potential presidential candidate of the conservative opposition.

Having been in a slump due to an absence of compelling potential presidential nominees, the members and supporters of the conservative opposition party rallied behind Yoon and chose him as their presidential candidate. In turn, the people of Korea elected him as the president of the Republic of Korea.

What does Yoon’s election as president signify?

First, the defeat of President Moon Jae-in and the Democratic Party.

This election was in essence a showdown between the ruling party’s bet on character and the opposition’s bet on putting the Moon administration on trial. Lee Jae-myung, a “president for the economy,” came face to face with Yoon Suk-yeol, who represented “a new party in power.” Yoon and his push to take back the presidential office won out. The outcome may have been a victory for the People Power Party even if its presidential nominee was Hong Jun-pyo, Yoo Seong-min, Won Hee-ryong, or Oh Se-hoon.

In a presidential election, voters typically cast their ballot based on candidates’ prospects. In spite of this, the ruling party’s bet on character proved unsuccessful. In other words, the people voted retrospectively. Why? That’s because the Moon administration’s faults were too significant to brush aside.

What were the administration’s faults, then? Democratic Party supporters pointed out two major failings: disastrous real estate policies and the Cho Kuk affair.

The Moon administration’s failed real estate policies caused extreme hardship for the public. Lee Jae-myung lost by a national margin of 250,000 votes. On the other hand, he lost by 300,000 votes in Seoul alone.

The Cho Kuk affair alerted the younger generation to the hypocrisy of the ruling power. There’s no need to elaborate. If it weren’t for the Cho Kuk affair, there wouldn’t be President-elect Yoon.

Second, a pushback against the ruling party’s successive victories.

Moon and the Democratic Party won in the 2016 general election, the 2017 presidential election, the 2018 local elections, and the 2020 general election. They’ve had four successive electoral victories. Did they win by merit alone? Surely not. Yet, the ruling power remained arrogant.

In a democratic country, it’s impossible for a single party to win elections for eternity. This election was a balancing opportunity for voters against the ruling party. The special mayoral election in Seoul on April 7, 2021, was just a preview.

Who will win the 2024 general election, then? There’s no way to know. That’s just how elections are.

Third, the counterattack of anti-politics.

Other than Park Chung-hee and Chun Doo-hwan, who rose to the presidency through coup d’etats, no other president in the history of the Republic of Korea was elected to the highest political office of the country as a former non-politician. Yoon’s election is as shocking as a coup d’etat.

Chaebol chairman Chung Ju-yung threw his hat in the ring for the presidency in 1992. Successful venture entrepreneur and professor Ahn Cheol-soo did so as well. Both ran as third-party candidates and failed.

Yoon took a detour, running first in the conservative opposition party’s presidential primary. That path proved successful for him, as he combined anti-politics with a campaign to flip the Blue House. But is that a good thing? Is it normal for a political outsider to suddenly become president? The approach Yoon took is questionable.

Yoon will be inaugurated as the president of the Republic of Korea on May 10. The two months remaining will be Yoon’s time. What should he do in that period? What are some of the tasks Yoon is currently facing?

First, Yoon must kick off his term as president on track.

The presidential election swapped the ruling party and the opposition overnight. Now, the opposition holds the majority in the National Assembly. Yoon will not be able to accomplish anything without the help of the Democratic Party. He won’t be able to appoint a new prime minister, nor will he be able to reorganize the government. He should immediately enter into political negotiations with the Democratic Party, communicating and compromising.

If he pushes ahead with his agendas with force, carried away by his victory in the election, Yoon may trigger candlelight protests in Gwanghwamun even before he takes office as president. As well, Moon and the Democratic Party should admit their defeat in the election and actively cooperate with Yoon as he assumes office and kicks off his administration.

Second, Yoon must promptly distribute and organize power.

The People Power Party will soon be in an uproar due to vicious power struggles. Those who want to join the Blue House and the administration will use their connections to put in a word for themselves, pushing out their competitors.

As someone without any experience with party politics, Yoon won’t be able to handle the situation on his own. He will have to share power with other politicians instead of trying to command everything heedlessly. Yoon should keep legal professionals at arm’s length, disavow his track record as a through-and-through prosecutor.

Party affairs should be relegated to PPP leader Lee Jun-seok and other party leaders. The most urgent matter at hand is nominating candidates for the local elections on June 1. Though Yoon may have had priority in party affairs as a presidential nominee, he has no authority as a president-elect. The president-elect should not interfere in the matters of the party. To do so would open up the path to becoming an “imperial president” — in other words, the path towards political death.

Third, Yoon must reconsider his Korean Peninsula pledges completely.

The president has the obligation to faithfully work towards the peaceful reunification of his country. But Yoon’s Korean Peninsula pledges are remnants of the Cold War. One day before the election, Yoon wrote on Facebook: “The main enemy is North Korea”; “Strengthen the South Korea-US alliance”; “Additional deployment of THAAD.” He must have done so in order to shore up conservative votes.

Now that the election is over, those pledges should be scrapped. The situation on the Korean Peninsula is dire. One misstep by the president-elect may result in serious damage to the national interest.

There is only one Korean Peninsula policy in the Republic of Korea. Moon’s Korean Peninsula peace process originated from former President Park Chung-hee’s July 4 South-North Korea Joint Communique and former President Roh Tae-woo’s Korean National Community Unification Formula. Yoon must reflect deeply on his Korean Peninsula policies.

The president is at once the head of the nation as well as the leader of the administration. Yoon must only use the power afforded to him as the head of the administration. If he tries to use the power of a national leader, that will be his downfall. After all, power is futile.

By Seong Han-yong, senior editorial writer

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]