Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and top advisers to Yoon submitted their resignations en masse early on Thursday, April 11, after their conservative ruling party suffered a crushing defeat in parliamentary elections. The results of Wednesday's legislative election posed a huge political blow to President Yoon Suk Yeol, setting back his domestic agenda and leaving him facing an intensifying political offensive by his liberal opponents during his remaining three years in office.
In a separate news conference, ruling People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon said he would step down as well to take responsibility for the election defeat.
With most of the votes counted, the main opposition Democratic Party and its satellite party appear to have won a combined 175 seats in the 300-member National Assembly. Another small liberal opposition party was expected to win 12 seats under a proportional representation system, according to South Korean media tallies. Yoon's ruling People Power Party and its satellite party were projected to have obtained 109 seats.
The final official results are expected later Thursday.