Complex sentence: Moon managed to capitalize on the conservatives' decline in popularity amid a series of corruption scandals: as one pundit said, "Moon had managed to portray himself as a moderate and rational leader who has the backing of the younger generation".
Split into simpler sentences: Moon managed to capitalize on the conservatives' decline in popularity amid a series of corruption scandals. As one pundit said, "Moon had managed to portray himself as a moderate and rational leader who has the backing of the younger generation".