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What’s next for South Korean democracy? 🎧

Jean Hong discusses Korea’s January 6th moment, the emergence of a Korean far right, and democratic resilience.

- January 27, 2025
Is South Korean democracy at stake?
Photo by Daniel Bernard on Unsplash

After declaring martial law in December 2024, President Yoon Suk Yeol has faced impeachment, arrest, and detention with insurrection charges. To discuss what all of this means for democratic consolidation in South Korea, I spoke with Ji Yeon (Jean) Hong, an associate professor of political science and Korea Foundation Professor of Korean Studies at the University of Michigan. Her research focuses on the political economy of authoritarianism, with particular attention to South Korea and other East Asian countries. 

Jean wrote an article with Hye Young You for Good Authority shortly after the declaration of martial law. We review how the situation has changed since then. We discuss the storming of a court in Seoul and the parallels with January 6th, the emergence of the far right, and how legal and legislative proceedings are likely to evolve. And we discuss how public opinion has changed. While large majorities of the Korean public opposed the declaration of martial law, there still is a lot of public support for the president’s party.

 Hear our conversation using the audio player below. You can also subscribe to our podcast on Apple Podcasts.