Election fever: early voting turnout hits 26%

Presidential candidates campaign on Children’s Day, Friday. With the election only three days away now, their final campaigning will be centered on wooing voters in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province. From top left clockwise are Moon Jae-in of the Democratic Party of Korea, Hong Joon-pyo of the Liberty Korea Party, Sim Sang-jung of the Justice Party, Yoo Seong-min of the Bareun Party and Ahn Cheol-soo of the People’s Party. / Yonhap

Record-high 11 million people vote

By Yi Whan-woo

Over a quarter of eligible voters cast ballots during the two-day early voting for the May 9 presidential election.

Some 11.07 million people or 26.06 percent of the total electorate voted Thursday and Friday, according to the National Election Commission (NEC).

The voter turnout is a record high since early voting was introduced in 2014. The overall turnout rate was 12.2 percent in the 2016 general election and 11.5 percent in the 2014 local elections.

By region, Sejong marked the highest turnout at 34.48 percent, followed by South Jeolla Province with 34.04 percent, Gwangju with 33.67 percent and North Jeolla Province with 31.64 percent. Daegu had the lowest rate at 22.28 percent.

Analysts said the government’s campaign to promote the convenience of the early voting system is “paying off” after it was introduced in the 2014 local elections.

They also attributed the high turnout rate to increased voter awareness about the significance of choosing a capable leader, following the removal of Park Geun-hye from the presidency over an influence-peddling scandal.

“The campaign for early voting was well done,” said Hwang Tae-soon, a political analyst. “It was also easy and convenient to vote, so voters who already made up their minds did not have to wait until May 9 and could cast their ballots at the nearest polling station immediately.”

Eligible voters aged 19 and older could vote at any of the 3,507 polling stations nationwide from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. if they had a valid ID card with them.

Kim Hyo-jae, a former presidential secretary for political affairs under the Lee Myung-bak administration, claimed the high voter turnout reflects “the public desire for a change in the government to correct wrong practices in the political arena.”

Shin Yul, a professor of political science at Myongji University, said the people who joined the mass protests against former President Park over the scandal want to reaffirm their influence on politics by exercising their voting rights. “That’s what I call political efficacy of the public, which proved to be successful in removing Park from office,” he said.

Difference in voter turnout by region

Regarding the stark difference between the Jeolla and Gyeongsang provinces in voting rates, analysts speculate it is a “matter of desire for change of government.”

The southwestern region encompassing Gwangju and North and South Jeolla provinces is a traditional liberal stronghold.

The conservatives’ home turf is Busan, Daegu and North and South Gyeongsang provinces.

“I’d say there is a strong public desire in the Jeolla region for a change of government,” Hwang said. “In contrast, the conservatives in Gyeongsang area appear to be undecided in choosing their candidate, especially between Hong Joon-pyo and Ahn Cheol-soo.”

He said Gyeongsang voters may be hoping for a possible last-minute alliance between Hong, the conservative candidate from the Liberty Korea Party (LKP), and Ahn, the centrist contender from the People’s Party, to defeat Moon Jae-in of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK).

Shin said the fierce rivalry between Moon and Ahn may have led to high voter turnout in the Jeolla region.

“They want to ensure their favorite candidate wins in the election, and they want to help their respective candidate right away,” he said.

Shin speculated the high voter turnout in the early voting period may benefit the liberal candidates.

He pointed out that those in their 20s and 30s, many of them liberals, have been more aware of the early voting than the older, more conservative generations.

The NEC predicts the total turnout rate may surge over 80 percent on May 9.

It does not mean, however, that Moon, who led the other candidates by wide margins in the early polls, will continue to benefit from such a high turnout rate overall, according to Shin.

“The high voter turnout overall means candidates who are capable of expanding their support base will have an advantage,” he said. “And Moon does not appear to be capable of expanding his base any further.”