Scandals rock Park bid for Korean presidency Park Geun-hye's entry to the South Korean presidential race on Tuesday, ahead of the election in December, was to be expected. Ms Park - daughter of an authoritarian general who ruled the nation for nearly two decades - had led opinion polls for months. Yet three days later she was forced to cancel campaign events amid turmoil in her ruling New Frontier party, a reflection of the political baggage that could yet undermine Ms Park's bid to become her country's first female president. In her maiden campaign speech to cheering supporters in Seoul's Yeongdeungpo Time Square, Ms Park was at pains to cast herself as a candidate for change. She promised to abandon the existing "backwards paradigm" by adopting a more conciliatory approach to North Korea, taking a tougher stance towards big business, and pushing reform of the country's welfare system. The policy outline represented a contrast with the unpopular conservative regime of Lee Myung-bak, who defeated Ms Park for their party's nomination in 2007. Ms Park's billing as a centre-right president would give her the cover to pursue radical change more easily than could a liberal candidate, said Shin Yul, a professor of politics at Myongji University. She is the one who chaebol [large corporations] should be afraid of because she can actually put a knife to them. Despite her efforts to focus on the future, however, Ms Park is closely associated with the political legacy of New Frontier, formerly the Grand National Party. She oversaw the party's rebranding last year, and her popularity contributed to its surprise victory in April's parliamentary elections. But she now needs to avoid being damaged by recent strife within New Frontier. Lee Sang-deuk, the brother of the president and one of the party's leading figures, was arrested on Wednesday on suspicion of bribery. On the same day, the party's parliamentary leader offered to resign after New Frontier lawmakers blocked the arrest of a party member on allegations of corruption. Ms Park shelved campaign events on Friday to help tackle the crisis. The bigger challenge for Ms Park may be managing the legacy of her father, Park Chung-hee, who seized power in a military coup in 1961 and ruled South Korea until his murder in 1979. Mr Park launched the mass industrialisation that has made South Korea one of Asia's most advanced nations, with the region's fourth-largest economy. But he is widely viewed, particularly among the young, as a dictator who paid little heed to civil liberties. Ms Park's heritage is enough to put off many voters on the streets of Seoul. Park lived in the Blue House [the presidential residence] under a dictator . . . I don't think she has the experience to understand the life of ordinary people," said Park Sangho, 31, a consultant. Nonetheless, Ms Park remains the clear favourite to win. In a country where politics is traditionally male-dominated, the unmarried 60-year-old has won widespread respect for eschewing the traditional maternal role to pursue a life of public service - including 14 years as a parliamentarian and a decade at the helm of Yeungnam University. Her election would be a powerful symbol of change in South Korea, where only 54 per cent of working-age women are employed. Yet perhaps Ms Park's strongest asset is the absence of a strong alternative, said Lee Kyu-young, a professor at Sogang University. Ahn Chul-soo, a 50-year-old rival and software entrepreneur, is popular among young voters - but he has not declared his intention to run, and may now have "missed the moment," said Mr Lee. No other potential candidate has come close to matching Ms Park in recent polls. Lee Suk-won, a 25-year-old soldier on patrol near the US Embassy, said none of the candidates had impressed him. Even though I'm not a big fan of Park, I would choose her because there is no other choice. Additional reporting by Song Jung-a in Seoul