Early Voting First Day Noon Turnout 6.56%... '1.66%p Higher Than Last General Election'

Early Voting Turnout Record Set During the Presidential Election

On the first day of early voting for the April 10 general election, the nationwide average turnout rate at 10 a.m. on the 5th was recorded at 6.56%. This is more than 1.66 percentage points higher than the turnout rate on the first day of early voting four years ago, but slightly lower than that of the last presidential election.

The National Election Commission announced that as of 12 a.m. (11:50 a.m. tally) on the same day, out of a total of 44,280,011 eligible voters, 2,903,033 had cast their votes.

This turnout rate is higher compared to previous elections. In the last general election, the turnout rate at 12 a.m. on the first day of early voting was 4.9%. However, it did not reach the 7.11% recorded in the presidential election. Considering that the presidential election turnout rate is generally higher than that of other elections, this is an unusually high level.

The high early voting turnout in this general election appears to be significantly influenced by both ruling and opposition parties actively encouraging early voting.

Looking at the turnout by region, Jeollanam-do recorded an early voting rate of 10.87% at this time, showing the highest turnout among metropolitan units. In contrast, Daegu Metropolitan City had the lowest turnout rate among the 17 metropolitan cities and provinces at 5.01%. Seoul recorded 6.46%, Gyeonggi-do 5.8%, and Incheon Metropolitan City 6.01%.

On the 5th, when early voting for the 22nd National Assembly election began, voters lined up to cast their votes at the Naegok-dong early voting station set up at the Naegok-dong Open Culture Center in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

Unlike in the past when the People Power Party was passive about early voting due to suspicions of election fraud, this time the party decided to actively encourage voting, with all its local constituency candidates and all People’s Future proportional candidates participating in early voting. This was in response to the request by Han Dong-hoon, the People Power Party Emergency Committee Chairman, to actively participate in early voting. After casting his vote in Sinchon, Seoul, Han urged, "Whether early voting or the main vote, the counting will be conducted by multiple counts," and asked voters to "trust and participate in early voting."

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party leader, who voted early together with students from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), said after voting, "Since there may be circumstances that prevent voting on the main voting day, please actively participate in early voting today and tomorrow," adding, "If you give up your sovereignty and abstain from voting, the share goes to the vested interests."

Early voting will continue on the 6th at 3,565 polling stations nationwide. Voters can cast their ballots at any early voting station regardless of their registered address, as long as they bring their ID. The locations of early voting stations can be checked on the National Election Commission website or through portal services. Voting hours are from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. If voting in the registered electoral district, the voter is classified as an in-district voter; if voting outside their residence, they are classified as an out-of-district voter and their ballot will be transferred to the relevant district, city, or county election commission.