ABSTRACT
An institutionalization of a pluralistic party system and a securing of elite responsiveness to popular demands remain challenging tasks for democratic consolidation. The democratic transition in South Korea was initiated by opposition forces that had survived severe political repression since the inception of the notorious, authoritarian Yushin regime in 1972. Political elites have tried to put together a stable, grand conservative ruling coalition under which controlled reform measures could be implemented to widen the social basis and legitimate the appeal of that leadership and a process of democratic consolidation. The government attempted to overcome the opposition by constructing a grand conservative ruling coalition, as in Japan's Liberal Democratic Party. The ruling Democratic Justice Party then sought an issue-based loose coalition with opposition political parties by accommodating their conflicting demands in order to break the political stalemate and permit new state initiatives.
