South korea election lee myung bak 2012 5 18

A South Korean activist (C) wearing a mask of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un holds a mock missile during a rally denouncing North Korea's rocket launch and the three-generational dictatorship, in Seoul on April 15, 2012. Has normal electoral rules applied, tensions with the North, plus renewed concern over Pyongyang's missile and nuclear programs, would normally have benefited the opposition. But as signs of an opening up emerge under the North Korea's new leader Kim Jong Un, the appetite south of the border could be for a leader more willing to re-open the door to aid and dialog.