BEIJING, Dec. 20 (Xinhuanet) -- Ruling Saenuri party candidate Park Geun-hye has been elected as ’s first female president, extending conservative rule for another five years.

With over 99 percent of the votes counted, Park won 51.6 percent, with her rival, liberal candidate Moon Jae-in taking 48 percent. Voter turnout was estimated at 75.8 percent, the highest in 15 years.

Park Geun-hye of South Korea’s ruling Saenuri Party won the tightly contested presidential election held Wednesday, a historic win that came despite her past as the daughter of Park Chung-hee, a divisive military strongman.

Park made her victory speech to cheering crowds in central Seoul, saying she will put the peoples’ livelihood before anything else.

Park said, "I want to say thanks to my supporters. This time, we worked together to achieve victory. It was a hard campaign. As I travelled the country, there were lots of hard times, but I felt the warmth of the people, even on cold days. It made me very happy. I will keep all the promises I made and work as your President. I will work to make people’s dreams come true and bring happiness to the country."

Liberal candidate Moon Jae-in has conceded defeat at his campaign headquarters in Seoul. Moon said he failed to keep the promise of an era of new politics.

Moon said, "I want to apologize to everyone for the results. I apologize for not keeping the promises I made. I take responsibility for the defeat, and for coming up short. I want to thank all those who supported me."

Park is to take office in February when Lee Myung-bak ends his single five-year term.

Still, one of the biggest challenges for Park down the road, analysts say, is to overcome the political divide between the left and right.

Analysts say her win highlights the deep-rooted regional divide in South Korea’s political landscape, as it confirmed traditional voting trends in both the conservative and liberal strongholds.

(Source: CNTV.cn)