South Korea's Political Parties in Five Minutes — What's Happening in Yeouido and Gwanghwamun (2026)

Walk around Seoul for a few days and you’ll bump into Korean politics without even trying. On a Saturday afternoon, Sejong-daero in Gwanghwamun might be closed off end to end, an exit at City Hall Station shut, and a loudspeaker blaring loud enough to hear from two blocks away. When you don’t know what’s going on, it’s unnerving. Once you do, it’s just a matter of thinking “ah, that’s where it’s all happening today” and walking the other way.

This piece doesn’t take sides. It just lays out which parties exist, who holds the majority right now, what you’ll actually see on the street, and what to do when you do.

Why is politics so visible in Seoul?

The reason politics stands out so much in Seoul is simple: every political stage sits dead in the middle of downtown — and right on top of the usual tourist routes.

In other words, the most common tourist loop in Seoul — see Gyeongbokgung, cross Gwanghwamun Square, head down toward City Hall — is exactly where the rallies happen. No point trying to dodge it; just know that’s how the city is laid out.

What parties are there?

Democratic Party of Korea — the ruling party

The Democratic Party of Korea (usually shortened to the Democratic Party) holds both the presidency and the National Assembly majority. It defines itself as progressive-liberal and has long campaigned on expanding welfare and reforming the chaebol conglomerates and the prosecution. Its support base is traditionally the Honam region (Gwangju, South and North Jeolla) and the Seoul metro area, along with relatively younger voters.

When Lee Jae-myung won the snap presidential election in June 2025, the party moved from opposition to government, and it now holds 161 of 300 seats — a majority on its own. At the party convention in August 2026, former prime minister Kim Min-seok was elected leader.

People Power Party — the main opposition

The People Power Party (PPP) is the conservative main opposition, with 110 seats. It has long stood for a market-driven economy, a stronger U.S.–South Korea alliance, and a hard line on North Korea. Its base is the Yeongnam region (Daegu, North Gyeongsang, Busan, South Gyeongsang) and older voters.

It lost power in the December 2024 martial law crisis and the impeachment that followed, and was beaten badly in the June 2026 local elections — but it held on to the Seoul mayorship (Oh Se-hoon) and Daegu, North Gyeongsang, and South Gyeongsang. If you’re visiting Seoul, this part actually matters — because Seoul City Hall’s policies and the central government’s often pull in different directions.

The other parties

Korea’s National Assembly is effectively a two-party system, but the smaller parties often end up holding the casting vote.

🏛️ Seats in the 22nd National Assembly by party (300 total, as of September 2026)

One thing worth knowing up front: Korean parties change their names a lot. Mergers, splits, and rebrandings happen so often that a party name from a ten-year-old article is frequently not the name you’ll hear today. You’ll make sense of things faster if you read parties as “Democratic-leaning or conservative-leaning” rather than by name.

What’s happened over the past few years?

Most of what you see on the streets now is a continuation of a thread that began in December 2024.

• December 2024 — Then-president Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law, only for the National Assembly to vote it down within hours. Impeachment followed.
• April 2025 — The Constitutional Court upheld the impeachment and removed him from office.
• June 2025 — Lee Jae-myung won the snap election and took office on June 4.
• June 2026 — Local elections. The Democratic Party won a landslide, taking 12 of the 17 metropolitan mayoral and gubernatorial posts, while the PPP held on to four: Seoul, Daegu, North Gyeongsang, and South Gyeongsang.
• Throughout 2026 — The martial law trials continued. Former president Yoon Suk Yeol was convicted of insurrection and other charges and sentenced to a term that included life imprisonment.

That last number is the important one. Only 21% of Koreans say they trust the National Assembly. It’s part of why so many people take to the streets — and also why most Koreans treat rallies as everyday background noise.

You run into a rally — what now?

Straight to the point: Korean rallies are, by and large, not dangerous. Most are legal gatherings registered in advance, and the police focus on keeping groups apart and managing traffic rather than cracking down. Tourists are essentially never targeted; if anything, participants are more likely to hand a passing foreigner a flyer or step aside with a smile to let you through.

The real issue isn’t danger — it’s the crowding.

Why do they face off? — counter-rallies

This is the most striking feature of Korean protest culture. When one side calls a rally, the opposing camp registers a counter-rally on the same day, in the same area. So it’s common to hear completely opposite slogans ringing out from opposite ends of Sejong-daero at the same time.

Take Liberation Day (August 15) in 2026 — one day in central Seoul lays the whole structure bare. At 11 a.m., a conservative group rallied in front of the Dongwha Duty Free in Gwanghwamun; at 1 p.m., another conservative party held a rally and march in the same spot. At the same time, a progressive civic gathering marched down Yulgok-ro in Jongno toward Seoul Plaza, and at 2 p.m. the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) held its national workers’ rally, marching from the Anguk-dong intersection to the Gwanghwamun Woldae (the stone platform in front of the gate). Police fielded 218 traffic officers that day alone just to reroute vehicles.

Foreigners shouldn’t join in — and that’s the law

Watching as you pass by, or taking photos, is no problem at all. Joining in, though, is a different story.

The scope of “political activities” leaves room for interpretation, and there are almost no known cases of tourists actually being sanctioned. Still, it’s clearly a provision that could affect your residency status. Holding a flag, chanting slogans, or joining the ranks — best not to. Just stay an observer.

Want to go a little deeper? — places to visit

If the politics caught your interest, Seoul has a few places where you can see the backdrop firsthand.

One last thing

For Koreans, politics runs hot. You might hear voices rise at the next table in a restaurant. Even so, there’s really only one line a traveler needs to hold — if someone asks your opinion, smile and move on, and stay an observer on the street. Do that, and Seoul’s politics stops being something to worry about and becomes part of what helps you understand the city a little better.