Voter Turnout Hits Record Low of 46%
By Kim Yon-se
Staff Reporter
Voter turnout hit a record low of 46 percent as many young people stayed away from polling stations.
The ``issue-less'' campaign failed to attract more than 20 million people to vote.
The National Election Commission (NEC) reported that is the first time for the turnout to not pass the 50 percent mark in legislative elections.
The figure is lower than a provincial elections record low of 48.9 percent in 2002.
About 17.39 million out of the electorate of 37.79 million voted, far below the 60.6 percent in 2004, 57.2 percent in 2000, and 63.9 percent in 1996.
In 1948 when the first elections were held, the country saw the highest turnout of 95.5 percent.
Between 1980 and 2000, the highest rate was 84.6 percent in 1985 when liberals waged a pro-democracy struggle against Chun Doo-hwan's military dictatorship-based conservatives.
Incheon recorded the lowest voter turnout of 42.2 percent; followed by Gwangju, 42.5 percent; Busan, 42.9 percent; Gyeonggi Province, 43.7 percent; Daegu, 45 percent; Daejeon, 45.3 percent; and Seoul, 45.7 percent.
Jeju Province posted the highest rate of 53.5 percent; trailed by North Gyeongsang Province, 53 percent; Gangwon Province, 51.5 percent; and South Jeolla Province, 49.9 percent.