South Korean President Lee Jae-myung’s campaign was marked a pragmatic pivot to the centre, but whether he will bridge left–right divides on foreign policy will be a defining feature of his presidency

South Korea’s presidential election result was never really in doubt. The real question is which version of Lee Jae-myung will now govern the highly polarized nation of 50 million.

Both Lee and conservative Kim pledged change for a country deeply scarred by a shock martial law briefly imposed by former leader Yoon Suk Yeol.