Lawsuits, scandals, armed troops and a knife-wielding attacker all failed to deter Lee Jae-myung's ascendancy from sweatshop worker to the cusp of South Korea's presidency.

After losing by a gossamer thin margin in 2022, the Democratic Party candidate has returned to the ballot, and is now poised to replace the political rival he was instrumental in unseating.

Opponents decry Lee, 60, for his populist style. But his rags-to-riches personal story sets him apart from many of South Korea's political elite.

After dropping out of school to work at a factory to support his family, he suffered a disabling elbow injury in an industrial accident.

He earned a scholarship to study law and passed the bar to become an attorney.

Lee has used this origin story to cultivate a loyal support base and frame himself as understanding the struggles of the underprivileged.

"You can worry about people outside shivering in the cold while you sit in your warm living room," Lee told AFP in a 2022 interview.

"But you can never really understand their pain."

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