1972 South Korean presidential election

1972 South Korean presidential election

← 1971 23 December 1972 1978 →
2,359 members of the National Conference for Unification 1,180 votes needed to win
Nominee Park Chung-hee Party Democratic Republican Electoral vote 2,357
Votes of the National Conference for Unification   Park Chung-hee: 2357   Invalid/Blank: 2
President before election Park Chung-hee Democratic Republican Elected President Park Chung-hee Democratic Republican

Presidential elections were held in South Korea in December 1972 following the promulgation of the Yushin Constitution, which created the National Conference for Unification, a body whose functions included being an electoral college for presidential elections. Incumbent President Park Chung-hee claimed that Western-style liberal democracy would bring more chaos to the economically struggling nation than it could afford. In contrast, he argued that the Yushin system created a "Korean-style democracy" with a strong, unchallenged presidency. He argued this system was necessary to keep the country stable.^[1]