Voting for the Democratic Party Convention Starts on the 4th... "Electorate's Vote Will Be a Variable"

Mobile and ARS Voting Results Announced on the 8th
Diversified Electorate Vote Battle Is the Decisive Factor

The party member voting for the March 8 party convention to elect the next leadership of the People Power Party began on the 4th.

According to the People Power Party, the electorate with voting rights can vote once either through mobile voting on the 4th and 5th or ARS voting on the 6th and 7th. For mobile voting, participation is possible from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. using a mobile phone registered under the voter's name.

The election results will be announced on the 8th. If no candidate receives a majority, a runoff between the first and second place candidates will be held. In this case, a one-on-one debate will take place on the 9th, followed by mobile voting on the 10th, ARS voting on the 11th, and the final confirmation of the party leader on the 12th.

The electorate with voting rights in the People Power Party consists of approximately 800,000 responsible party members who pay monthly dues, and a total of 839,569 including general party members and delegates. At the June 11, 2021 party convention where former leader Lee Jun-seok was elected, there were about 330,000 voters, but this number has significantly increased nationwide following last year's presidential and local elections.

Candidates attending the People Power Party leader candidate debate held on the 3rd at Channel A in Mapo-gu, Seoul, are taking a commemorative photo. From the left, candidates Hwang Kyo-ahn, Kim Ki-hyun, Ahn Cheol-soo, and Chun Ha-ram.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The proportion of party members in the 'stronghold' Yeongnam region decreased by 11.7 percentage points from 51.3% in 2021 to 39.6% this year. In contrast, the metropolitan area increased by 5.5 percentage points from 32.3% to 37.8%, and the Chungcheong region rose by 4.3 percentage points from 10.3% to 14.6%. Regarding age groups, those aged 60 and above accounted for the largest share at 42% in both 2021 and this year, but the proportion of voters in their 10s to 30s increased by 6.2 percentage points from 11.6% in 2021 to 17.8% this year.

With the diversification of the electorate by region and age group, and the implementation of mobile voting, there is speculation that the influence of 'organizational votes' may diminish compared to the past. In particular, the ruling party analyzes that the actual voting sentiment of the electorate, centered on responsible party members, may differ from the results of opinion polls that have targeted the People Power Party's support base.

A People Power Party official said, "Most of the newly recruited party members are young generations who came in riding the 'Lee Jun-seok wave' and those who joined to vote for candidate Yoon Seok-yeol during the last presidential primary," adding, "The competition between these groups will be the decisive factor in the party convention."