Liberal and centrist parties likely to fall victim to scaled-down overseas voting

Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae, right, along with Interior Minister Chin Young, left, and Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, gives a public statement for fair and safe elections at the Seoul Government Complex, Thursday, as the 13-day official campaign period for the April 15 general elections began the same day. / Yonhap

By Kang Seung-woo

Political parties are scrambling to calculate how the reduction in the availability of overseas voting because of the COVID-19 pandemic will affect them in the upcoming general election. If history is any guide, liberal and centrist parties may suffer the most from this.

The elections are scheduled to take place April 15 to choose who will make up the 300-strong 21st National Assembly.

Earlier, more than 177,000 overseas Koreans in 119 countries registered to vote in the proportional representation section of the election, with voting initially scheduled for April 1 to 6.

However, as many countries have implemented lockdowns and movement restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the government decided to suspend polling activities at 65 diplomatic missions in 40 countries, including the United States and Canada, dropping the number of voters who can cast their ballots to 86,040 at 90 missions in 66 countries. In addition, the voting period has been shortened in some places.

According to the results of the past two presidential elections in 2012 and 2017 and the 20th general election in 2016, in which the overseas voting began in earnest, the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) may be a victim of the scaled-down election.

In the 2017 presidential election, Moon Jae-in, then-the DPK candidate, garnered 130,886 out of 221,209 votes from abroad, or 59.2 percent. In addition, Ahn Cheol-soo of the centrist People's Party came in second with 36,073 over Hong Joon-pyo of the conservative Liberty Korea Party (LKP) with 17,294 ― although Hong was the overall runner-up in the election. Sim Sang-jeung, a candidate from the liberal Justice Party, was also ahead of Hong in overseas polling with 25,757 votes.

In the 2012 edition, President Park Geun-hye of the conservative Saenuri Party was elected over Moon, but she was behind in overseas votes ― 67,319 to 89,192. The Saenuri Party was the predecessor of the LKP that recently changed its name again to the United Future Party.

The 2016 general election also found Korean voters living overseas were in favor of liberal and centrist parties.

In the race for proportional representation seats, the DPK gathered 23,936 votes to the Saenuri's 17,172. The Justice Party had 10,559.

While official campaigning for the parliamentary elections kicked off Thursday, the government is set to take measures to create a safe voting environment amid the coronavirus crisis.

The government asked for understanding regarding its decision to suspend overseas voting, adding that it will try to make this run smoothly.

“It was a decision made considering the impact on the safety and health of our nationals living abroad when they vote in places exposed to high infection risk, and it became difficult to conduct the polls when many foreign governments have enforced executive orders, such as the restriction of movement and lockdowns,” said a joint statement issued by the foreign, justice and interior ministers.

“We feel sorry that our nationals in these countries are unable to exercise their right to vote, and we ask for your understanding.”

To ensure a smooth process, diplomatic missions will work closely with the Korean communities to provide a safe voting environment and assistance until the polls are over, the statement said.

The government also plans to ensure every voter, including confirmed coronavirus patients, can cast ballots under strict quarantine control, such as by helping them vote from home and setting up separate polling stations in public treatment facilities.

Every polling station will be sanitized before and after voting, and there will be a separate polling place for voters who show symptoms, according to the government.