Democratic party politician Lee, who earlier lost to Yoon by just 0.73 percentage points, has spoken about how his family often survived by scavenging rotten fruit discarded by vendorsread more
Lee Jae-myung, who once toiled in factories as an underage worker to help his struggling family, has been formally chosen as the presidential candidate of South Korea’s Democratic Party (DP), setting the stage for an extraordinary political comeback just weeks after President Yoon Suk Yeol’s dramatic ouster.
With the presidential election slated for June 3— now just 37 days away— recent polls suggest Lee holds a strong lead, in contrast to his narrow defeat in 2022, when he lost to Yoon by a margin of just 0.73 percentage points.
Lee’s life of struggle
Born in 1964 to a poor family in the southeastern city of Andong, Lee’s early years were shaped by grinding poverty. His mother eked out a living cleaning public toilets and selling toilet paper at a local market in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, while a young Lee worked in factories to help put food on the table, according to
Yonhap News Agency.
He has described his childhood as “horrific,” recalling in his memoir how his family often survived by scavenging rotten fruit discarded by vendors.
Despite these brutal circumstances, Lee managed to carve out a path forward — passing his high school and college qualification exams while labouring during the day, and later studying law at Chung-Ang University on a scholarship. He went on to pass the bar exam in 1986.
It’s the classic underdog narrative. But that is not what Lee is trying to be known for anymore.
An image change
Interestingly, despite his working-class roots, Lee has recently distanced himself from the DP’s traditional pro-labour platform, in an attempt to broaden his appeal to conservative and centrist voters.
Known for his sharp tongue and aggressive style during his tenure as mayor of Seongnam and later as Gyeonggi Province governor, Lee has in recent months sought to soften his image, branding himself a “pragmatic” leader focused on economic growth.
His political stock within the Democratic Party has also risen markedly. Unlike the last presidential race, Lee now commands a firm grip over the party apparatus, bolstered by his visible leadership during the National Assembly’s dramatic rejection of Yoon’s attempted martial law declaration.
Lee livestreamed his role in the late-night vote, helping galvanise public opposition to what was widely seen as an attack on South Korea’s hard-won democracy.