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Roh wins South Korea vote
Staff and wires
SEOUL, South Korea --Ruling party candidate Roh Moo-hyun has won South Korea's presidential election, following a tightly-fought contest that focused heavily on foreign policy issues.
With about 99.9 percent of the votes counted, Roh had 48.9 percent and Lee 46.6 percent.
Roh, 56, thanked his supporters and vowed to work for every South Korean.
"I will try to become a president, not just for the people who supported me, but also for the people who opposed me in the election," Roh said at his party headquarters. Supporters clapped, danced and waved balloons.
"I have failed again in my bid for the presidency," said Lee, 67, who lost the 1997 election to incumbent President Kim Dae-jung.
The hotly contested race between Roh and Lee -- the two front runners in a six horse race -- was dominated by concerns over North Korea's nuclear weapons program and the status of 37,000 U.S. forces in the South.
The winner will lead South Korea into the next era of relations with North Korea and the United States. North Korea was branded part of an "axis of evil" along with Iraq and Iran by the U.S.
The vote took place amid a surge of anti-Americanism fueled by the acquittals of U.S. soldiers who blamed for the deaths of two Korean teenage girls in a road accident.
However, despite such burning issues, turnout among the nation's 35 million eligible voters was the lowest in South Korean history.
At 70.2 percent, it was almost 11 percent lower than in the 1997 presidential election -- which was itself a record low.
Far apart
In the early days of the campaign Roh had edged ahead of Lee in opinion polls, but he suffered a setback when his coalition partner withdrew his support over what he called overly "anti-American" comments relating to North Korea. (Roh profile)
While both candidates wanted their northern neighbor to give up its nuclear ambitions, during campaigning they were far apart on how to deal with the communist state.
Roh wanted to curb Pyongyang's nuclear plans through dialogue but Lee was an outspoken critic of Seoul's so-called "Sunshine policy" of engagement with the North, and was keen to stand up to Pyongyang and cut aid as a way of forcing the North's hand.
Both contenders also held different views on how to preserve Seoul's alliance with Washington.
Roh argued the five-decade-old alliance with America is unequal and must be revised. Lee however said he wanted to preserve Seoul's ties with Washington. (Lee profile)
The presence of 37,000 U.S. troops on the peninsula as a buffer against Seoul's reclusive and unpredictable northern neighbor, is also a sore point for Koreans.
Surveys showed the election split South Korea with younger voters keen on the more liberal Roh, and older ones backing conservative Lee.
Roh will replace Kim Dae-Jung, who has served as the country's president since 1997 and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000 for his efforts to improve ties with North Korea.
President Kim's five-year term ends in February. Under South Korean law, he was barred from seeking re-election.
The National Election Commission is expected to formally confirm Roh as the winner early Friday.
-- CNN's Sohn Jie-ae, The Associated Press and Reuters news agency contributed to this report.
Staff and wires
SEOUL, South Korea --Ruling party candidate Roh Moo-hyun has won South Korea's presidential election, following a tightly-fought contest that focused heavily on foreign policy issues.
With about 99.9 percent of the votes counted, Roh had 48.9 percent and Lee 46.6 percent.
Roh, 56, thanked his supporters and vowed to work for every South Korean.
"I will try to become a president, not just for the people who supported me, but also for the people who opposed me in the election," Roh said at his party headquarters. Supporters clapped, danced and waved balloons.
"I have failed again in my bid for the presidency," said Lee, 67, who lost the 1997 election to incumbent President Kim Dae-jung.
The hotly contested race between Roh and Lee -- the two front runners in a six horse race -- was dominated by concerns over North Korea's nuclear weapons program and the status of 37,000 U.S. forces in the South.
The winner will lead South Korea into the next era of relations with North Korea and the United States. North Korea was branded part of an "axis of evil" along with Iraq and Iran by the U.S.
The vote took place amid a surge of anti-Americanism fueled by the acquittals of U.S. soldiers who blamed for the deaths of two Korean teenage girls in a road accident.
However, despite such burning issues, turnout among the nation's 35 million eligible voters was the lowest in South Korean history.
At 70.2 percent, it was almost 11 percent lower than in the 1997 presidential election -- which was itself a record low.
Far apart
In the early days of the campaign Roh had edged ahead of Lee in opinion polls, but he suffered a setback when his coalition partner withdrew his support over what he called overly "anti-American" comments relating to North Korea. (Roh profile)
While both candidates wanted their northern neighbor to give up its nuclear ambitions, during campaigning they were far apart on how to deal with the communist state.
Roh wanted to curb Pyongyang's nuclear plans through dialogue but Lee was an outspoken critic of Seoul's so-called "Sunshine policy" of engagement with the North, and was keen to stand up to Pyongyang and cut aid as a way of forcing the North's hand.
Both contenders also held different views on how to preserve Seoul's alliance with Washington.
Roh argued the five-decade-old alliance with America is unequal and must be revised. Lee however said he wanted to preserve Seoul's ties with Washington. (Lee profile)
The presence of 37,000 U.S. troops on the peninsula as a buffer against Seoul's reclusive and unpredictable northern neighbor, is also a sore point for Koreans.
Surveys showed the election split South Korea with younger voters keen on the more liberal Roh, and older ones backing conservative Lee.
Roh will replace Kim Dae-Jung, who has served as the country's president since 1997 and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000 for his efforts to improve ties with North Korea.
President Kim's five-year term ends in February. Under South Korean law, he was barred from seeking re-election.
The National Election Commission is expected to formally confirm Roh as the winner early Friday.
-- CNN's Sohn Jie-ae, The Associated Press and Reuters news agency contributed to this report.
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