Analysts are suggesting that the likelihood of the next president doing away with the 38-year-old system of a single five-year term instituted in 1987 appears higher than ever before, with Democratic Party candidate and frontrunner Lee Jae-myung showing a strong commitment to an amendment and the opposition party also repeatedly emphasizing the need to amend the Constitution in a way that decentralizes power.

South Korea ’s leading presidential hopefuls traded sharp blows in their first televised debate on Sunday as the country prepared for a snap election on 3 June following the impeachment of former leader Yoon Suk Yeol over his failed bid to impose martial law.