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President Park Geun-hye

SEOUL. — The impeachment of South Korean President Park Geun-Hye, has set off an early scramble among her potential successors, even before the final decision has been made to remove her from office.

While some have openly announced their intention to run, others have been more circumspect — resulting in a “phony campaign” where the declared and undeclared protagonists skirmish without really joining battle.

On paper, the next presidential election is still slated for December 2017, but Park’s impeachment could see it held much earlier.

Last week’s parliamentary vote to oust her needs to be ratified by the Constitutional Court — a process that could take six months, although most observers believe the judgement will come sooner.

If the justices confirm impeachment, Park will be permanently removed and elections must be held within 60 days — meaning a ballot could be held as early as March.

That isn’t necessarily good news for the one front runner who still hasn’t openly declared an interest in the race — out-going UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon.

Until recently, Ban regularly topped opinion polls and was widely expected to run as the nominee of Park’s ruling conservative Saenuri Party.

Now, with other candidates already out of the starting blocks, Ban is hamstrung by the fact that he doesn’t step down as UN chief until the end of this year.

In his last press briefing as secretary general on Friday, the 72-year-old said he would return to South Korea and “consider seriously” how best to serve his country.

He then embarked on what sounded like a mini stump speech, bemoaning the “turmoil” of the impeachment crisis and stressing the need for a “new type of inclusive leadership”.

Problematically for Ban, the political upheaval has ripped the Saenuri Party apart, leaving him without an obvious platform to launch and run his campaign.

“It will be difficult for Ban to win the election by himself,” said Hahn Kyu-Sup, a communications professor at Seoul National University. — AFP.