ABSTRACT
1987 is a pivotal point in South Korea’s contemporary political history. South Korea’s authoritarian regime became the victim of its own economic success. South Korea’s transition to democracy was facilitated by the 1985 National Assembly elections. The phenomenal success of the newly formed autonomous opposition party called New Korean Democratic Party caused a crack in authoritarian regime and made a strong linkage between the party and social movement forces. The US policy encouraged the South Korean opposition forces to press ahead for change through direct confrontation with the authorities in street demonstrations. South Korea is ruled by a strong presidential system. South Korea used to have a highly centralized political system until 1995, when local elections were held to put the country’s autonomous local government system into practice for the first time in 34 years. The introduction of local elections has brought an opportunity for South Korean parties to build up their support base at the grassroots level.
