By 6 PM, 263,523 Confirmed Nationwide... Record High Expected on Presidential Election Day (Summary)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] As of 6 p.m. on the 8th, one day before the 20th presidential election, more than 260,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases were reported nationwide. This is the first time that over 260,000 cases have been recorded during the same time frame, and the election day is also expected to see the highest number of confirmed cases ever.

According to Seoul Metropolitan Government and other local governments, from midnight to 6 p.m. on the day, 263,523 people across 17 cities and provinces nationwide were confirmed positive for COVID-19.

This is 87,437 more than the 176,086 cases recorded during the same time frame the previous day. The previous highest number for this time frame was 211,049 cases on the 3rd.

At the beginning of the week, the number of confirmed cases tends to decrease due to fewer tests conducted over the previous weekend, but as the week progresses, the number of tests recovers, leading to a sharp increase in confirmed cases.

Compared to the same time frame one week ago on the 1st (176,786 cases), the number has increased by 1.5 times, and compared to two weeks ago on the 22nd of last month (113,323 cases), it has increased by 2.3 times.

Since there is still time until midnight when the tally closes, the number of new confirmed cases announced on the election day, the 9th, is expected to increase further and set a new record.

On the 7th, 207,716 new COVID-19 cases were reported, maintaining the daily count above 200,000. Citizens visiting the temporary screening clinic set up at Seoul Station Plaza are undergoing tests. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

The current record for the highest number of new daily confirmed cases is 266,847, announced on the 4th.

As of 6 p.m. on the day, 144,970 new cases (55.0%) were reported in the metropolitan area, and 118,553 new cases (45.0%) in non-metropolitan areas.

Gyeonggi Province reported 69,934 cases, nearly reaching 70,000, and Seoul also recorded over 60,000 cases for the first time during this time frame with 64,534 cases.

Busan reported over 20,000 cases with 20,050, and Gyeongnam (16,506), Gyeongbuk (11,336), Daegu (11,186), and Incheon (10,502) each reported over 10,000 cases.

Other regions reported as follows: Chungnam 8,010, Daejeon 7,719, Gwangju 7,128, Gangwon 7,013, Ulsan 6,635, Jeonnam 6,151, Chungbuk 6,033, Jeonbuk 5,830, Jeju 2,763, and Sejong 2,193.

Since the Omicron variant became the dominant strain in Korea, the number of new confirmed cases has been rapidly increasing.

From the 2nd for one week, the daily new confirmed cases were 219,227 → 198,800 → 266,847 → 254,327 → 243,623 → 210,716 → 202,721, averaging 228,037 cases per day.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.