3 PM Voter Turnout at 43.1%, 7%p Lower Than 4 Years Ago "Impact of Presidential Election and Early Voting" (Update)

On the 1st, the day of the 8th nationwide local elections, voters are casting their precious votes at the 5th polling station of Bukgajwa 2-dong, set up at the coffee shop SANMEAG in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] As of 3 PM on the 1st, the voter turnout for the 8th nationwide simultaneous local elections was recorded at 43.1%. This is 7.0 percentage points lower compared to the 7th local elections.

The National Election Commission announced the turnout rate as of 3 PM on this day. Voting began at 6 AM at polling stations nationwide, with 19,103,024 voters participating out of a total of 44,303,449 eligible voters.

This figure is 7.0 percentage points lower than the turnout rate at the same time during the 7th local elections in 2018 (50.1%).

The Election Commission explained the low turnout by stating, "Since the local elections were held just three months after the presidential election in March, voter interest appears to be relatively low." They added, "In particular, the overall turnout dropped compared to the high early voting rate, which indicates a dispersal effect caused by early voting."

They urged voters, "Local elections are for selecting regional representatives who directly affect the community, so please make sure to participate in the voting."

By region, Jeonnam showed the highest turnout at 52.3%, followed by Gangwon (51.0%), Gyeongbuk (46.1%), Jeju (46.0%), and Gyeongnam (45.5%).

The lowest turnout was recorded in Gwangju at 31.6%, followed by Daegu (35.8%), Busan (41.1%), and Daejeon (42.1%). The turnout rates in the metropolitan area were Seoul 44.2%, Gyeonggi 42.3%, and Incheon 41.5%.

General voter elections will continue until 6 PM today, and elections for COVID-19 confirmed patients will be held from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM. Voters must bring their ID and vote at the polling station corresponding to their registered residence.

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