# 1952 South Korean presidential election

Presidential and vice presidential elections were held in South Korea on 5 August 1952. The result was a victory for Syngman Rhee, who won 74.6% of the vote. Voter turnout was 88.1%. The election was held during the Korean War, which played an important role in consolidating Rhee's support.

## Background

President Rhee's factions took a devastating blow in the 1950 legislative election, when they won a little more than a quarter of the seats in the National Assembly, combined. In belief he would have little shot at reelection in the opposition-controlled legislature, President Rhee decided to amend the constitution so that the president would be elected by the people, instead of the legislature. President Rhee had the amendment pass in July 1952, after using police and military to threaten lawmakers.

## Results
### President

| Candidate | Candidate | Party | Votes | % |
| | Syngman Rhee | Liberal Party | 5,238,769 | 74.62 |
| | Cho Bong-am | Independent | 797,504 | 11.36 |
| | Yi Si-yeong | Democratic Nationalist Party | 764,715 | 10.89 |
| | Shin Heung-u | Independent | 219,696 | 3.13 |
| Total | Total | Total | 7,020,684 | 100.00 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | Valid votes | 7,020,684 | 96.49 |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 255,199 | 3.51 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 7,275,883 | 100.00 |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 8,259,428 | 88.09 |
| Source: Nohlen et al. |||||

#### By region

| Region | Syngman Rhee | Syngman Rhee | Cho Bong-am | Cho Bong-am | Yi Si-yeong | Yi Si-yeong | Shin Heung-u | Shin Heung-u |
| Region | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Seoul | 205,300 | 82.2 | 25,631 | 10.3 | 14,883 | 6.0 | 3,923 | 1.6 |
| Gyeonggi | 657,174 | 87.7 | 44,967 | 6.0 | 34,704 | 4.6 | 12,891 | 1.7 |
| Gangwon | 366,583 | 92.4 | 10,516 | 2.7 | 13,378 | 3.4 | 6,305 | 1.6 |
| North Chungcheong | 386,665 | 86.7 | 25,875 | 5.8 | 23,006 | 5.2 | 10,409 | 2.3 |
| South Chungcheong | 636,061 | 82.4 | 56,590 | 7.3 | 58,754 | 7.6 | 20,947 | 2.7 |
| North Jeolla | 468,220 | 65.9 | 109,490 | 15.4 | 96,271 | 13.6 | 36,221 | 5.1 |
| South Jeolla | 823,587 | 73.6 | 99,885 | 8.9 | 165,245 | 14.8 | 30,677 | 2.7 |
| North Gyeongsang | 921,988 | 75.0 | 129,791 | 10.6 | 140,271 | 11.4 | 37,100 | 3.0 |
| South Gyeongsang | 693,523 | 55.4 | 288,654 | 23.0 | 211,544 | 16.9 | 58,586 | 4.7 |
| Jeju | 79,668 | 83.8 | 6,105 | 6.4 | 6,659 | 7.0 | 2,637 | 2.8 |
| Total | 5,238,769 | 74.6 | 797,504 | 11.4 | 764,715 | 10.9 | 219,696 | 3.1 |
| Source: National Election Commission |||||||||

### Vice president

| Candidate | Candidate | Party | Votes | % |
| | Ham Tae-young | Independent | 2,943,813 | 41.27 |
| | Lee Beom-seok | Liberal Party | 1,815,692 | 25.45 |
| | Chough Pyung-ok | Democratic Nationalist Party | 575,260 | 8.06 |
| | Lee Gap-sung | Liberal Party Movement | 500,972 | 7.02 |
| | Yi Yun-yong | Choseon Democratic Party | 458,583 | 6.43 |
| | Jeon Jin-han | General Alliance of Laborers for Korean Independence | 302,471 | 4.24 |
| | Louise Yim | Liberal Party Movement | 190,211 | 2.67 |
| | Pak Sung-wook | Independent | 181,388 | 2.54 |
| | Jeong Ki-won | Liberal Party Movement | 164,907 | 2.31 |
| Total | Total | Total | 7,133,297 | 100.00 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | Valid votes | 7,133,297 | 98.11 |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 137,585 | 1.89 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 7,270,882 | 100.00 |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 8,259,428 | 88.03 |

#### By region

| Region | Ham Tae-young | Ham Tae-young | Lee Beom-seok | Lee Beom-seok | Chough Pyung-ok | Chough Pyung-ok | Lee Gap-sung | Lee Gap-sung | Yi Yun-yong | Yi Yun-yong | Jeon Jin-han | Jeon Jin-han | Louise Yim | Louise Yim | Pak Sung-wook | Pak Sung-wook | Jeong Ki-won | Jeong Ki-won |
| Region | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Seoul | 70,206 | 27.6 | 117,326 | 46.2 | 16,429 | 6.5 | 13,815 | 5.4 | 15,475 | 6.1 | 8,911 | 3.5 | 4,676 | 1.8 | 4,508 | 1.8 | 2,727 | 1.1 |
| Gyeonggi | 347,799 | 45.6 | 252,090 | 33.1 | 27,776 | 3.6 | 35,154 | 4.6 | 42,038 | 5.5 | 21,076 | 2.8 | 13,195 | 1.7 | 10,547 | 1.4 | 12,593 | 1.7 |
| Gangwon | 223,534 | 55.6 | 129,704 | 32.3 | 5,962 | 1.5 | 9,427 | 2.3 | 11,555 | 2.9 | 10,675 | 2.7 | 4,424 | 1.1 | 2,811 | 0.7 | 3,674 | 0.9 |
| North Chungcheong | 216,223 | 47.8 | 130,843 | 28.9 | 18,926 | 4.2 | 23,190 | 5.1 | 24,442 | 5.4 | 13,098 | 2.9 | 9,094 | 2.0 | 7,983 | 1.8 | 8,830 | 2.0 |
| South Chungcheong | 118,291 | 15.1 | 452,209 | 57.6 | 47,482 | 6.1 | 34,172 | 4.4 | 43,895 | 5.6 | 35,057 | 4.5 | 21,047 | 2.7 | 18,354 | 2.3 | 14,287 | 1.8 |
| North Jeolla | 190,246 | 26.3 | 235,637 | 32.5 | 67,731 | 9.4 | 48,554 | 6.7 | 63,729 | 8.8 | 34,750 | 4.8 | 37,024 | 5.1 | 24,985 | 3.5 | 21,500 | 3.0 |
| South Jeolla | 729,541 | 64.2 | 59,318 | 5.2 | 125,525 | 11.0 | 77,231 | 6.8 | 60,658 | 5.3 | 23,221 | 2.0 | 20,470 | 1.8 | 18,031 | 1.6 | 22,739 | 2.0 |
| North Gyeongsang | 716,794 | 57.4 | 97,256 | 7.8 | 100,498 | 8.1 | 115,755 | 9.3 | 73,684 | 5.9 | 50,884 | 4.1 | 28,263 | 2.3 | 32,719 | 2.6 | 31,980 | 2.6 |
| South Gyeongsang | 296,766 | 23.3 | 306,982 | 24.1 | 161,787 | 12.7 | 139,000 | 10.9 | 116,260 | 9.1 | 100,061 | 7.9 | 49,675 | 3.9 | 59,079 | 4.6 | 43,807 | 3.4 |
| Jeju | 34,413 | 36.0 | 34,327 | 35.9 | 3,144 | 3.3 | 4,674 | 4.9 | 6,847 | 7.2 | 4,738 | 5.0 | 2,343 | 2.5 | 2,371 | 2.5 | 2,770 | 2.9 |
| Total | 2,943,813 | 41.3 | 1,815,692 | 25.5 | 575,260 | 8.1 | 500,972 | 7.0 | 458,583 | 6.4 | 302,471 | 4.2 | 190,211 | 2.7 | 181,388 | 2.5 | 164,907 | 2.3 |