KBS's election prediction system 'Decision K Plus' forecasts that former prosecutor general Yoon Suk Yeol, representing the main opposition People Power Party(PPP), will win the presidential race.

KBS made the call at around 3:22 a.m. Thursday, predicting that Yoon will garner 48-point-six percent of votes.

'Decision K Plus' calls an election when the probability of a candidate winning an election surpasses 99 percent.

As of 3:37 a.m., 96-point-21 percent of the votes have been counted with Yoon garnering 48-point-six percent support and Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party winning 47-point-79 percent of the votes. 

Earlier exit poll results released by the country's three terrestrial broadcasters KBS, MBC, and SBS had predicted a tight race between Yoon and Lee, with Yoon garnering 48-point-four percent of support and Lee winning 47-point-eight percent.

It is the closest presidential election since a direct electoral system was introduced in South Korea in 1987.
 
The closest presidential election before this year's election was in 1997 when Kim Dae-jung was elected to be the 15th president, winning with just a one-point-53 percentage point gap against his opponent Lee Hoi-chang.
 
If confirmed, Yoon will serve as the 20th president of the Republic of Korea for the next five years, with his term beginning on May 10.