Prime Minister Han Duck-soo has been mulling whether to run for election, while the main opposition candidate and front-runner suffered a setback in court.

South Korea's third acting leader in five months, Lee Ju-ho, is an understated labour economist and education bureaucrat thrust into managing high-stakes trade talks with the United States and a country reeling from political knife fights before a crucial election.

South Korea’s former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo says he will run in next month’s presidential election and would seek to lessen the powers of the office and ease strife-ridden domestic politics if he