Koreas Trump Rises in Polls as Voter Anger Fuels Populism
He respects Donald Trump and enjoys being compared to Bernie Sanders.
Lee Jae-myung, mayor of a city near Seoul, is rising in opinion polls with about a year to go until South Korea’s next presidential election. He wants to break up the country’s biggest companies, meet unconditionally with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and throw President Park Geun-hye in jail over an influence-peddling scandal.
“Americans impeached their establishment by electing Trump,” Lee, 52, said in an interview Wednesday at his office in Seongnam city. “Our own elections will mirror that.”
With populist movements gaining traction globally, Lee is tapping into anger in South Korea over corruption and a lack of jobs. In recent weeks, Seoul has seen some of the biggest protests since the 1980s as ordinary Koreans decry the links between politicians and big business that have stifled competition in Asia’s fourth-biggest economy. Park’s approval dropped to a record low of 4 percent this week, Gallup Korea said Friday.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-11-24/harnessing-trump-and-sanders-korean-populist-rises-in-polls
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