Moon Jae-in, the former human rights lawyer and a close associate of former president Roh Moo-hyun, was elected as the 19th president of South Korea, in a special election on May 9, due to the impeachment of Park Geun-hye.
Though he was a strong candidate on his own merit, Moon's candidacy was also propelled by discontented citizens who became wary of public corruption (exemplified by the one that brought down Park Geun-hye), economic policy mismanagement, and uncertain future faced by younger generations. It is also a culmination and sweet victory of "candlelight revolution," participated by millions of citizens in peaceful, orderly protests -- without any violence or casualties.
Moon's first priority would be to address pressing domestic issues, but he will also need to show keen and strong leadership in promoting steps towards defusing tensions in Northeast Asia.
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