Seoul , South Korea ( CNN ) -- Park Geun-hye lived up to her nickname as the `` Queen of Elections '' after winning the race Wednesday to become South Korea 's first female president . Park , 60 , will return to the Blue House , the official residence for the nation 's president , where she spent her formative years . She has admitted to taking inspiration from Britain 's former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Queen Elizabeth II . Throughout her campaign , Park used her gender in television campaign advertisements , signing off as `` the prepared female president . '' On Wednesday night , Park smiled broadly , shook hands with supporters who chanted `` President Park Geun-hye , '' and pledged `` an era of happiness . '' But as the daughter of former dictator Park Chung-hee , many see it impossible to separate her present from her past . Park Chung-hee seized power in a military coup in 1961 and ruled until he was assassinated by his spy chief in 1979 . It is widely accepted he rebuilt the country from the ashes of the Korean War and sparked a dramatic economic transformation , but his methods split the country . He changed the constitution to cement power and cracked down on dissent and opposition . Though Park did hold and win a number of elections during his reign , he is also accused of human rights abuses and delaying the advent of democracy in South Korea . Earlier in the campaign , Park Geun-hye spent months defending her father 's actions , insisting different times required different methods . But in September , she finally apologized to those hurt by his dictatorial rule . `` I understand that the end does not justify the means , '' she said . `` And this should be a lasting value for democracy . '' North Korea holds little sway in South Korea 's election . Her core support was among the over-50s , those who remember her father fondly as well as his economic policies that dragged the country out of poverty . His wife , Yuk Young-soo , remains to this day the most popular first lady South Korea has seen , according to polls . Known affectionately as `` mother of the nation , '' some supporters say Park resembles her mother with her frugal lifestyle and 1970s hairstyle . At a memorial service for her mother in August , she said she shares her mother 's vision of a more equal society . `` It was my mother 's dream , and her dream is now mine . '' Both of her parents were killed during their time in the Blue House . Her mother was assassinated in 1974 , killed by a botched North Korean attempt to kill her father . Park stepped in as first lady until her father 's assassination in 1979 . She then withdrew from public life . Being her father 's daughter is a double-edged sword and one that Andrei Lankov of Kookmin University in Seoul says she can not avoid : Will she be capable of challenging , deviating from the traditions of the heritage of her father , he asked . Park defeated liberal rival , Moon Jae-in , a former human rights activist , who was imprisoned during the 1970s for protesting against the regime of Park 's father . CNN 's Madison Park contributed to this report .
Park Geun-hye , 60 won the presidency to become first female to lead South Korea . Park returns to the Blue House , where her father once served as president . Comment: