Foreign media such as BBC and WSJ concurrently report, "Lee Jae-myung projected to win"

Major foreign media outlets including the BBC from the UK and The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) from the United States reported on the 3rd that Lee Jae-myung is projected to win, citing the results of the exit polls from the three major South Korean terrestrial broadcasters (KBS, MBC, SBS).

In the joint exit poll by the three broadcasters that day, Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party recorded a vote share of 51.7%, Kim Moon-soo of the People Power Party had 39.3%, and Lee Jun-seok of the Reform Party recorded 7.7%.

WSJ analyzed that Lee Jae-myung’s victory could bring changes to the relationships among South Korea, China, and North Korea. WSJ reported that a left-leaning politician, who has warned against South Korea relying excessively on the United States, is highly likely to win according to the exit polls, and noted that Lee Jae-myung once likened himself to Bernie Sanders.

It further noted that Lee recently stated that while the South Korea-U.S. alliance is a fundamental pillar of Korean diplomacy, this does not mean Korea should rely entirely on the alliance. Accordingly, it was forecast that the next administration will have to address issues such as U.S. tariff policy, the cost sharing for United States Forces Korea, and relations with North Korea.

The New York Times (NYT) reported, "Exit poll results suggest that after months of political turmoil, the center-left candidate Lee Jae-myung is expected to win the presidential election by a large margin," adding, "The president-elect will face the enormous tasks of reviving a sluggish domestic economy and mediating tensions between the United States—its key ally—and China."

The Associated Press (AP) noted, "Exit polls conducted by Korea's three broadcasters indicate Lee is likely to win comfortably," and analyzed, "This appears to be a significant moment for South Korea’s democracy."

Japanese news outlets including The Nikkei, The Asahi Shimbun, and The Yomiuri Shimbun also reported on the exit poll results.

Seulkee Lee, Hankyung.com reporter seulkee@hankyung.com