The new president, who will take office immediately, faces a number of pressing challenges including repairing domestic divisions, navigating US trade tensions and confronting North Korea’s growing nuclear threat.

South Korean voters are choosing who will succeed former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was removed from office over his ill-fated imposition of martial law.

Pre-election surveys suggest Yoon Suk Yeol's liberal rival, Lee Jae-myung, appears headed for an easy win, riding a wave of public frustration in the wake of Yoon's martial law debacle.