Roh, 56, claimed victory with 87 percent of the vote counted after opening up a 2.3 percent lead over Lee Hoi-Chang, 67, in a poll dominated by debate over ties with North Korea and the United States.

"I promise to do my best as president not only for my supporters but also all the people including those who oppose me," Roh told a victory press conference.

In the last presidential election in 1997, incumbent Kim Dae-Jung beat Lee by a 1.6 percent margin.

Within minutes, Lee conceded defeat.

"I again failed to win the people's mandate," said Lee. "I humbly accept their choice. I congratulate the president-elect Roh on his victory."

Roh was backed by a younger generation attracted by his soft line on the North while pro-US hardliner Lee was backed by an older generation still loyal to Washington and hostile to North Korea.

Hundreds of Roh's supporters celebrated at his Millennium Democratic Party headquarters in downtown Seoul.

Waving yellow balloons, a campaign symbol for Roh, they cheered and applauded as their candidate declared victory.

Roh, accompanied by his wife, smiled and waved to his supporters who surrounded the party building.

Exit polls showed this was a battle of the generations, with young voters heavily favouring Roh and their parents turning out for Lee.

KBS TV said Roh won 62.1 percent of votes of those under 30, while Lee won 58.8 percent of the vote of those in their 50s and older.

The defection of Roh's ally Chung Mong-Joon late Wednesday apparently did less damage than was originally feared to Roh's support.

Chung, South Korea's soccer supremo, quit a coalition he had formed with Roh after feeling slighted by the candidate in a final campaign joint appearance.

People under 40, two-thirds of South Korea's population, were twice as likely to vote for Roh and turned out heavily in his favour, according to exit polls.

The older generation of Korean War veterans heavily favoured Lee, who represented stability and order to Roh's reformist calls for change.

Anti-American sentiment that brought tens of thousands into the streets during the election campaign is a hot issue following the deaths of two South Korean schoolgirls in a road accident involving a US military vehicle in June.

(China Daily December 20, 2002)