South Korea's early voting turnout exceeds 13% by 9 a.m. on election's second day

South Korea's early voting for the 9th National Simultaneous Local Elections is seeing robust participation, with the turnout reaching 13.35% by 9 a.m. on May 30. This figure represents a notable increase compared to the previous election, surpassing the 11.81% recorded at the same time in 2022 by 1.54 percentage points.

The trend of high voter engagement continued from the first day of early voting, which set a record for local elections. The increasing gap in turnout compared to the previous election, which started at 1.45 percentage points and widened to 1.48 percentage points by 8 a.m., suggests sustained public interest.

Geographically, voter turnout varies significantly across the country. Jeollanam-do province leads with the highest participation at 25.32%, followed by Jeonbuk province at 22.08%. In contrast, Daegu recorded the lowest turnout at 10.37%. The capital region, including Seoul (12.89%), Gyeonggi (11.4%), and Incheon (11.81%), is seeing turnout in the early teens.

Early voting, which began on May 29, will continue until 6 p.m. on May 30. Voters are required to bring identification to their designated early voting centers, the locations of which can be found on the National Election Commission's website.