Supreme Council for National Reconstruction
The Third Republic was founded on the dissolution of the Supreme Council for National Reconstruction that overthrew the Second Republic and established a military government in May 1961. Park Chung-hee, the Chairman of the Supreme Council, was elected President of South Korea in the 1963 presidential election. The Third Republic was presented as a return to civilian government under the National Assembly, but in practice was a dictatorship under Park, Supreme Council members, and the Democratic Republican Party. The Third Republic prioritized South Korea's economic development, anti-communism, and strengthening ties with the United States and Japan. Park was re-elected in the 1967 presidential election and the National Assembly forced through a constitutional amendment to allow him to seek a third term, and was re-elected in the 1971 presidential election. Park declared a state of emergency in December 1971 and announced plans for Korean reunification in a joint communique with North Korea in July 1972. Park launched the October Restoration in October 1972, declaring martial law, dissolving the National Assembly, and announced plans for a new constitution. The Third Republic was dissolved on approval of the Yusin Constitution in the November 1972 constitutional referendum and replaced with the Fourth Republic of Korea.