South Korean prime minister offers to resign after parliamentary election defeat
South Korea’s prime minister and top presidential officials offered to resign after their ruling party suffered a crushing defeat in parliamentary elections.
SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea’s prime minister and senior presidential officials offered to resign en masse Thursday after their ruling party suffered a crushing defeat in parliamentary elections in a huge blow to conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol.
The results of Wednesday’s elections mean the liberal opposition forces will prolong their control of parliament until after Yoon completes his single five-year term in 2027. That will most likely set back Yoon’s domestic agenda and weaken his grip on the ruling party as he faces the opposition’s intensifying political offensive during his remaining three years in office, experts say.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and all senior presidential advisers to Yoon, except those in charge of security issues, submitted their resignations, according to Yoon’s office. It did not immediately say whether Yoon accepted their resignations.
Executive power in South Korea is heavily concentrated in the president, but the prime minister is the No. 2 official and leads the country if the president becomes incapacitated.
Yoon said he will “humbly uphold” the public sentiments reflected in the election outcome and focus on improving people’s economic situations and on reforming state affairs, Yoon’s presidential chief of staff, Lee Kwan-seop, said in a televised briefing.
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