List of presidents of South Korea

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Seal of the President of the Republic of Korea.svg
Presidential standard and seal of the president of the Republic of Korea
Rhee Syng-Man in 1948.jpg
Park Chung Hee (bagjeonghyi) Presidential Portrait (cropped).jpg
Park Geun-hye presidential portrait.png
Lee Jae-myung 20250823.jpg

The president of the Republic of Korea serves as the chief executive of the government of the Republic of Korea and the commander-in-chief of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.

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The South Korean government constitutionally considers the Korean Provisional Government (KPG) to be its predecessor. [1] The KPG was established in 1919 as a government in exile in Shanghai during the Japanese occupation of Korea. It had nine different heads of state between September 1919 and August 1948.

Under the 1988 Constitution of the Sixth Republic of Korea, the presidential term is set at five years with no re-election. The president must be a South Korean citizen, at least 40 years old, who has lived in South Korea for 5 years. [2] The term was previously set at four years during the First Republic from 1948 to 1960, including a two-term limit that was repealed in 1954. The presidency was changed into a ceremonial role elected by legislators to five-year terms during the Second Republic from 1960 to 1963. The Third Republic returned the presidency to a directly-elected position with a four-year term in 1963 and repealed the two-term limit in 1969. Under the Yushin Constitution of the Fourth Republic adopted in 1972, the presidency became an indirectly elected position with six-year terms and no limits to re-election. It was replaced with a seven-year term under the Fifth Republic in 1981, which retained the indirect elections but prohibited a second term. [3]

As of 2025, fourteen people have served in full capacity as president of South Korea [4] since the office was formally established on 24 July 1948, when Rhee Syng-man took office after being elected by the Constituent National Assembly. [3] The longest-serving president is Park Chung Hee, who held the office for nearly 16 years from 1963 until his assassination in 1979 following a period of authoritarian rule. [3] [5] The first and only woman to hold the presidency was his daughter Park Geun-hye, who was elected in 2012 and removed from office in 2017 after her impeachment was upheld by the Constitutional Court of Korea. [3] [6]

Lee Jae Myung assumed office on 4 June 2025 following the impeachment of his elected predecessor, Yoon Suk Yeol, by the National Assembly on 14 December 2024 after his martial law declaration. His powers were suspended until his impeachment was upheld by the Constitutional Court on 4 April 2025, which formally ended Yoon's presidency. Lee was elected in the 2025 presidential election. [7]

Presidents

Timeline

Lee Jae MyungLee Ju-hoChoi Sang-mokHan Duck-sooYoon Suk YeolMoon Jae-inHwang Kyo-ahnPark Geun-hyeLee Myung-bakGoh KunRoh Moo-hyunKim Dae-jungKim Young-samRoh Tae-wooChun Doo-hwanPark Choong-hoonChoi Kyu-hahPark Chung HeeYun Po-sunBaek Nak-junKwak Sang-hoonHo ChongSyngman RheeList of presidents of South Korea
Ideology#Time in officeName(s)
Conservative 921765 days Choi Kyu-hah, Chun Doo-hwan, Kim Young-sam, Lee Myung-bak, Park Chung Hee, Park Geun-hye, Roh Tae-woo, Rhee Syng-man, and Yoon Suk Yeol
Liberal 56188 days [q] Kim Dae-jung, Moon Jae-in, Roh Moo-hyun, Yun Po-sun, and Lee Jae Myung
Timeline of South Korean governments
Lee Jae MyungYoon Suk YeolMoon Jae-inPark Geun-hyeLee Myung-bakRoh Moo-hyunKim Dae-jungKim Young-samRoh Tae-wooChun Doo-hwanChoi Kyu-hahPark Chung HeeYun Po-sunSyngman RheeHistory of South Korea#Sixth Republic (1988–present)History of South Korea#Fifth Republic (1981–1988)History of South Korea#Fourth Republic (1972–1981)History of South Korea#Third Republic (1963–1972)Supreme Council for National ReconstructionHistory of South Korea#Second Republic (1960–1963)History of South Korea#First Republic (1948–1960)United States Army Military Government in KoreaList of presidents of South Korea

See also

Notes

  1. Rhee Syng-man resigned as a result of the April Revolution.
  2. Yun Po-sun resigned in the aftermath of the May 16 coup.
  3. Park Chung Hee served as Acting President from 24 March 1962 until 17 December 1963.
  4. Park Chung Hee was assassinated by National Intelligence Service director Kim Jae-gyu.
  5. Choi Kyu-hah served as Acting President from 26 October until 6 December 1979.
  6. Choi Kyu-hah resigned in the aftermath of the Coup d'état of May Seventeenth.
  7. 1 2 Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo were affiliated with Hanahoe.
  8. Roh Moo-hyun was impeached by the National Assembly on 12 March 2004. Roh was suspended until the Constitutional Court overturned the impeachment on 14 May 2004. [8]
  9. Goh Kun served as Acting President during Roh Moo-hyun's suspension.
  10. Park Geun-hye was impeached by the National Assembly on 9 December 2016. Park was suspended until she was removed from office on 10 March 2017, after the Constitutional Court upheld the impeachment. [9] [10]
  11. Hwang Kyo-ahn served as Acting President during Park Geun-hye's suspension. After Park was removed from office, Hwang continued as Acting President until the election of Moon Jae-in.
  12. Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached by the National Assembly on 14 December 2024. Yoon was suspended until he was removed from office on 4 April 2025, after the Constitutional Court upheld the impeachment. [11]
  13. Han Duck-soo served as Acting President during Yoon Suk Yeol's suspension. Han was later impeached by the National Assembly on 27 December 2024. [12]
  14. Choi Sang-mok served as Acting President during Han Duck-soo's suspension.
  15. Han Duck-soo was reinstated by the Constitutional Court on 24 March 2025. [13] After Yoon Suk Yeol was removed from office, Han continued as Acting President, until resigning on 1 May 2025, to run in the 2025 presidential election.
  16. After Han Duck-soo resigned, Choi Sang-mok was expected to serve as Acting President. However, Choi resigned on 1 May 2025, to avoid an impeachment vote by the National Assembly. [14]
  17. As of 2 October 2025.

    References

    1. Myers, Brian Reynolds (21 February 2018). "Constitutional Reform and Inter-Korean Relations: Part 2". Sthele Press. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
    2. "Constitution of the Republic of Korea". Government of South Korea. Retrieved 5 December 2024 via United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
    3. 1 2 3 4 Yap, Fiona (2019). "Term Limits in South Korea: Promises and Perils" . In Baturo, Alexander; Elgie, Robert (eds.). The Politics of Presidential Term Limits. London: Oxford University Press. pp. 451–458. doi:10.1093/oso/9780198837404.003.0022. ISBN   9780198837404. OCLC   1076408966.
    4. Morris-Grant, Brianna (3 December 2024). "South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol could be facing impeachment after martial law declaration — here's what that process looks like". ABC News . Retrieved 5 December 2024.
    5. Gan, Nectar (4 December 2024). "The troubled history of martial law, coups and toppled presidents many hoped South Korea had left behind". CNN . Retrieved 5 December 2024.
    6. Choe Sang-hun (9 March 2017). "South Korea Removes President Park Geun-hye" . The New York Times . Retrieved 5 December 2024.
    7. Jung Min-kyung (4 April 2025). "Yoon Suk Yeol: From star prosecutor to ousted president". The Korea Herald . Retrieved 19 April 2025.
    8. Faiola, Anthony (13 May 2004). "Court Rejects S. Korean President's Impeachment". The Washington Post . Retrieved 5 December 2024.
    9. Choe Sang-hun (9 March 2017). "South Korea Removes President Park Geun-hye". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 December 2024.
    10. "Timeline: South Korea's impeached President Park Geun-hye". Reuters. 30 March 2017. Retrieved 5 December 2024.
    11. Jessie Yeung, Gawon Bae and Yoonjung Seo (14 December 2024). "South Korea's parliament votes to impeach president over martial law debacle". CNN. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
    12. "South Korea votes to impeach acting president Han Duck-soo". BBC. 27 December 2024. Retrieved 27 December 2024.
    13. "South Korea court reinstates PM as acting leader". BBC. 27 December 2024. Retrieved 24 March 2025.
    14. 민경락. "[2보] 최상목 경제부총리, 탄핵안 상정 직후 사의 표명". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2025-05-01.