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Software tycoon Ahn channels France's Macron in bid for Korean presidency

He is trying to beat former presidential chief of staff Moon Jae-in ahead of the May 9 election

Published Tue, May 2, 2017 · 09:50 PM

Seoul

SOUTH Korean software tycoon Ahn Cheol-soo, who once led opinion polls in the presidential race, is finding his centrist approach and platform of championing markets drowned out by public demands for a clampdown on the country's scandal-hit elite.

The 55-year-old former medical doctor is trying to channel France's Emmanuel Macron after falling behind former party comrade Moon Jae-in ahead of the May 9 election.

Mr Moon has pulled ahead by vowing to crack down on graft, following influence-peddling allegations that forced former president Park Geun-hye out of office. A Gallup poll published on Friday put Mr Moon's support at 40 per cent, compared with 24 per cent for Mr Ahn.

"Ahn presents himself as the third way in a political landscape divided between reformists and conservatives," said Nam Chang-hee, a political science professor at South Korea's I…

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