As expected it looks like Lee Jae-myung is going to win the Korean presidency in a landslide because of his name recognition, the PPP being tarnished by Yoon’s impeachment, and the fact the PPP is fractured and cannot rally around a single candidate:

This undated composite photo shows Lee Jae-myung (L), former leader of the Democratic Party, and former Labor Minister Kim Moon-soo. (Yonhap)

A former leader of the Democratic Party (DP), Rep. Lee Jae-myung, is leading the race for the presidency of South Korea with nearly 49 percent support, a poll showed Monday. 

South Korea will hold a presidential election on June 3 as the Constitutional Court removed former President Yoon Suk Yeol from office over his failed martial law bid. 

According to the survey conducted by Realmeter on 1,506 adults aged over 18 from Wednesday to Friday, Lee topped the list with 48.8 percent.

Former Labor Minister Kim Moon-soo, who joined the conservative People Power Party (PPP) and declared his bid last week, came next with 10.9 percent, down 5.4 percentage points from the previous week.

Acting President Han Duck-soo made his first appearance in the survey with 8.6 percent, though he has not officially announced his presidential run. 

Former PPP leader Han Dong-hoon received 6.2 percent, and Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo garnered 5.2 percent, followed by Lee Jun-seok, a lawmaker of the minor opposition New Reform Party, at 3 percent. Support for other potential candidates was below 3 percent.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

A lot of military careers are being ended due to the pilots who committed the error of mistakenly bombing a Korean village back in March:

Two Air Force unit commanders have been booked in relation to an unprecedented mistaken bombing on a civilian town last month, officials said Monday, as the ministry released the interim probe results of the fighter jet accident.

On March 6, two KF-16 fighter jets dropped eight MK-82 bombs outside a training range in Pocheon, some 40 kilometers north of Seoul, during live-fire drills, injuring 52 people, including 38 civilians, according to an estimate by city authorities.

The two pilots, who are alleged to have erroneously entered the target coordinates prior to the live-fire drills, have been booked over charges of professional negligence resulting in injury and damaging military facilities. The pilots have also been suspended from air duty for one year.

“The ministry plans to refer the two pilots and the unit commanders who have been booked to the military prosecution after the probe concludes and seek disciplinary action against nine officials who were found to have belatedly reported the case and taken insufficient measures,” the ministry’s criminal investigation command said in a release.

The nine officials include seven from the Air Force and two from the Joint Chiefs of Staff, it added.

The ministry also plans to issue a warning against the Air Force’s operations commander, holding him accountable for command responsibility and insufficient reporting.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but it is interesting that personnel all the way up in the Joint Chiefs of Staff is facing charges. How could they have prevented this pilot error from happening?

Moving an entire Patriot battalion out of INDOPACOM you would think would be a huge signal to Iran they are about to get smashed if they don’t reign in the Houthis:

U.S. Patriot missile defense systems were recently moved from Asia to the Middle East amid ongoing fighting with Houthi rebels in Yemen and threats from their backers in Iran, the leader of Indo-Pacific Command told lawmakers this week.

Speaking before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday, Adm. Samuel Paparo said the Army had transferred a Patriot battalion from INDOPACOM to the Central Command area of operations as the military builds up its defenses in the region. Tensions have been escalating since the U.S. launched a fresh barrage of airstrikes against the Houthis last month, with President Donald Trump vowing to keep up the pressure until the militants halt attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea. Trump also has threatened to go after their backers in Iran if the maritime attacks don’t stop.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

With her husband impeached the lawfare against Kim Keon-hee is expected to accelerate:

Throughout Yoon’s nearly three-year presidency, a series of political scandals involving his wife — including allegations of election interference and corruption — faced intense public scrutiny. However, the investigation moved slowly while she was first lady.

The Supreme Prosecutors’ Office has been investigating Kim’s alleged involvement in election interference tied to self-proclaimed political broker Myung Tae-kyun, who was indicted in December for violating the Public Official Election Act.

Prosecutors questioned Myung on Thursday and Friday, a move some observers interpreted as a sign that a formal summons for Kim could be imminent.

Kim is accused of interfering in candidate nominations during the 2022 parliamentary by-elections. 

Yoon and Kim are suspected of receiving opinion polling services from a polling agency effectively run by Myung during the 2022 presidential campaign. In return, they allegedly helped Kim Young-sun, a former lawmaker from the conservative People Power Party, secure the party’s nomination for a parliamentary by-election in Changwon. The former lawmaker is said to have paid Myung for his services.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

Since Samsung has so much production in Vietnam compared to Apple’s heavy reliance on China, they probably are in better position to navigate the growing trade war between the U.S. and China:

Samsung Electronics remains on alert amid the Donald Trump administration’s unpredictable trade policies, despite the United States granting tariff exemptions for smartphones, laptops, personal computers and semiconductor equipment.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Saturday (local time) that those devices will be excluded from the sweeping 10 percent baseline tariff on nearly all countries, as well as the retaliatory 125 percent duty on China.

Following the updated guidance, Samsung has been considered one of the beneficiaries along with Apple and TSMC. Bloomberg described the measure as a “big win” for major tech firms.

The optimistic outlook stems from Samsung’s heavy reliance on production in Vietnam, which is on the verge of facing a 46 percent “reciprocal tariff” from the U.S. if trade talks between Hanoi and Washington fail following the current 90-day pause. The Korean company produces nearly 50 percent of all Galaxy smartphones sold globally at its Vietnamese facilities.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Impeached President Yoon continues the tradition of if you are a conservative President in South Korea you will be prosecuted afterwards and likely jailed:

Disgraced former President Yoon Suk Yeol is set to stand trial Monday on charges of orchestrating an insurrection through his declaration of martial law on Dec. 3, 2024, marking his first formal court appearance since being removed from office by the Constitutional Court early this month.

The first hearing, at which Yoon is required to appear, is to take place at the Seoul Central District Court and has drawn criticism for shielding the ousted leader from public view — a departure from the manner in which former presidents were tried in criminal court. (…….)

With his appearance at the Seoul Central District Court’s pretrial hearing of his criminal trial in February, Yoon became the first sitting president to go on trial for criminal charges.

But Yoon is far from the first former president to stand trial, as prior to Yoon, Chun Doo-hwan, Roh Tae-woo, Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye all faced criminal charges after their respective presidencies.

According to the Criminal Act, those convicted of leading an insurrection can face either the death penalty or life imprisonment.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.