Last Cabinet Meeting of the Current Administration
"Heavy Heart for Failing to Improve the Difficult Lives of Citizens"
Early Voting Begins Tomorrow... "Doing Our Best to Ensure a Fair Presidential Election"
Early voting for the 21st presidential election will be held nationwide at 3,569 polling stations over two days, from May 29 to 30. As the National Election Commission is making every effort to prevent controversies over transparency, such as suspicions of election fraud, major presidential candidates have also announced their intention to participate in early voting.
The Election Commission is implementing measures to enhance transparency, including 24-hour public access to CCTV footage of early ballot boxes and the publication of ballot inspection results. Starting with this early voting period, the number of voters at each polling station will be disclosed every hour. The commission plans to release the number of in-district and out-of-district voters for each polling station every hour to eliminate suspicions of inadequate or fraudulent early voting. In preparation for possible disruptions, such as interference with voting or intrusions into polling stations by individuals alleging election fraud, the commission has also requested the National Police Agency to cooperate in maintaining order, including stationing police officers at major polling stations.
On the morning of May 28, Lee Juho, Acting President and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, presided over the last cabinet meeting of the current administration at the Seoul Government Complex. He stated, "In one week, a new administration will take office," and added, "I hope that, from the perspective of the people and the national interest, the achievements of our government will be inherited and further developed, and that our mistakes will serve as lessons, so that the proud Republic of Korea, built by the great people through their blood and sweat, will be led toward even greater prosperity."
Lee expressed, "I feel deeply sorry and regretful to be holding the last cabinet meeting just over three years after the launch of this administration," and confessed, "Above all, I feel very heavy-hearted that we have not been able to visibly improve the difficult lives of small business owners, the self-employed, and other citizens." He also said, "I regret that we were not able to more fully explain to the public the initiatives we focused on and the direction we wanted to pursue, and that we did not listen more closely to public sentiment."
Lee urged, "I ask all cabinet members to do their utmost until the very end to fulfill our responsibilities, including maintaining a strong security posture, ensuring public safety, and managing a fair presidential election, so that we can bring our duties to a successful conclusion."
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