People Power Party Member Voting Begins... Higher Turnout Than 2nd Cutoff

On the 1st, when the mobile voting to select the People Power Party's presidential candidate began, a party member is casting a mobile vote. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-joo] As the party member voting to select the People Power Party's presidential candidate began on the 1st, the voter turnout was recorded at 21.3% as of 10:30 a.m. that day. This turnout is 1.8 percentage points higher than the second cutoff on June 2. There were even reports that the People Power Party's server went down due to the high turnout.

According to the People Power Party on that day, a total of 120,537 members participated in the mobile party member voting that started that day, resulting in a turnout rate of 21.3%. The mobile party member voting will continue until the 2nd, and telephone voting will also be conducted over two days on the 3rd and 4th. During this period, a general public opinion poll will be conducted simultaneously. The number of responsible party members with voting rights in the People Power Party is about 570,000, more than double the number at the party convention on June 11. At that time, about 380,000 members exercised their voting rights, with 190,000 new members added. Half of the new members are in their 20s to 40s, and it is analyzed that they will have a significant impact on the final results.

The candidates made their final appeals for support. Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl and People Power Party lawmaker Hong Joon-pyo focused on courting party members. On the 1st, former Prosecutor General Yoon held a meeting with the Gyeonggi Province election committee and party district chairpersons in the afternoon and is also coordinating a visit to Gwangju. Within the camp, opinions are divided between visiting after the main primary (on the 5th) and the view that the sooner the better. Lawmaker Hong held a press conference in the afternoon at Suseong Lake in his constituency, Daegu. His strategy is to target regions with the highest proportion of People Power Party members first.

Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, is attending the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 1st and delivering opening remarks. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

Former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min and former Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong focused on promotion through interviews. Former lawmaker Yoo appeared on YTN radio that day and emphasized that competitiveness in the main race depends on moderate expansion. Former Governor Won also appeared on KBS radio, criticizing that former Prosecutor General Yoon lacks experience and that lawmaker Hong seems to have regressed compared to four years ago.