S. Korean provincial chief nominated as presidential candidate for ruling party

SEOUL - South Korea's Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung was nominated Sunday as presidential candidate for the ruling Democratic Party.

In the party's presidential primary that began on Sept 4, Lee has won 50.29 percent of all votes cast by both party members and ordinary citizens.

It was followed by former Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon with 39.14 percent, former Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae with 9.01 percent and two-term lawmaker Park Yong-jin with 1.55 percent.

Lee pledged a powerful reform of the real estate market, saying in his acceptance speech that he will rid the country of the stigma of "a republic of unearned real estate income" through his reform.

The 56-year-old said the upcoming presidential election, scheduled for March 9 next year, will be an ultimate battle against the corrupt establishment, noting that people need to decide whether to go back to the dark past or start off as a new country of hope.

Seeing the present time as a grand transformation era, Lee said he will push for a powerful state-dominated economic renaissance, eliminate unfairness and irrationality in every corner of the country, and root out unearned income.

The lawyer-turned-politician also vowed to adopt universal welfare programs on basic income, basic housing and basic finance, while enhancing investment in culture, science and technology.