A former senior North Korean diplomat won a constituency seat in South Korea’s parliamentary elections, the first such achievement among tens of thousands of North Koreans who have fled their authoritarian, impoverished homeland.

Thae Yong Ho, a former minister at the North Korean Embassy in London who resettled in South Korea with his family in 2016, was elected as a lawmaker representing a district in Seoul’s most affluent Gangnam neighborhood, internationally known for rapper PSY’s 2012 hit song, “Gangnam Style”.

“Republic of Korea (South Korea) is my motherland. Gangnam is my hometown,” an emotional Thae said at his campaigning office. “I thank you (Gangnam residents) for selecting me to become the first (defector) from North Korea to win a constituency … I’ll only uphold your order and work hard”.

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Thae later bowed deeply and waved his hands with his fingers making V signs. Tears stood in his eyes, when Thae started signing South Korea’s national anthem with his supporters.

Read more: AP