South Korea’s new president to shake up the region

South Korea’s new president is taking power at a turbulent time for the country and the path he carves could shake up the region.

Conservative Yoon Suk Yeol of the People Power Party secured the election by a razor-thin margin Wednesday, pulling ahead of rival Lee Jae-Myung by less than one percentage point.

Yoon is a newcomer to politics, having spent the last 27 years of his career as a prosecutor — but he will face an array of challenges when he replaces liberal incumbent President Moon Jae in the Blue House on May 10.

Threats from North Korea are high on the agenda – as well as rising tensions between South Korea’s partners, the US and China. Yoon will have his hands full with domestic issues as well, with a growing “gender war” and surging Covid-19 cases.