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| 2026-05-30 20:01:07
(5th LD) local elections-early voting
(5th LD) Early voting for June 3 local elections ends with record 23.51 pct turnout
(ATTN: ADDS details in paras 3-5, photo)
SEOUL, May 30 (Yonhap) -- Two-day early voting for next week's local elections, which will decide the next mayors and governors of major local governments, ended with a turnout of 23.51 percent Saturday, the election watchdog said, marking the highest figure for such polls.
More than 10.4 million people out of 44.6 million registered voters cast their ballots during the early voting period, which ended at 6 p.m. Saturday after beginning at 6 a.m. Friday, according to the National Election Commission (NEC).
The turnout for the first day of early voting came to 11.6 percent, followed by 11.91 percent on the second day.
The combined turnout was higher than the 20.62 percent recorded in early voting for the 2022 local elections. The main vote will take place Wednesday.
Among all elections, the highest early voting turnout was recorded in the 2022 presidential election at 36.93 percent.
By region, South Jeolla Province posted the highest turnout with 38.95 percent, followed by North Jeolla Province with 35.05 percent.
The southwestern city of Gwangju posted 27.83 percent, with the central city of Sejong recording 27.67 percent, according to the NEC.
Daegu, around 240 kilometers southeast of the capital, on the other hand, posted the lowest turnout at 18.65 percent. Seoul's turnout came to 23.84 percent.
The NEC added the early voting turnout for the parliamentary by-elections to fill 14 vacant National Assembly seats came to 24.12 percent.
On social media, President Lee Jae Myung urged voters to participate in voting, calling it the "lifeline" of democracy.
"Giving up voting is the same as giving up your and your family's future," he wrote on X. "Abstaining from voting is not being neutral but siding with those who harm your life and community."
Lee and first lady Kim Hea Kyung cast their early votes Friday at a community center near Cheong Wa Dae.
Up for grabs are 16 mayoral and gubernatorial posts, along with 227 heads of local governments and some 4,000 members of local councils.
The upcoming elections are widely viewed as the first major nationwide vote for the Lee administration since it took office last June after former President Yoon Suk Yeol was ousted over his failed martial law bid.
Both the ruling Democratic Party (DP) and the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) have been rallying voters to hit the polls, with recent polls suggesting that races are tightening in more regions than earlier expected.
The Seoul mayoral election has shaped up to be a fierce two-horse race between incumbent Oh Se-hoon of the PPP and ruling party candidate Chong Won-o.
A Hankook Research poll released Monday showed Chong leading with 42 percent against Oh's 36 percent.
The two candidates campaigned across the capital on Saturday, with Chong meeting hikers on Mount Gwanak in southern Seoul, while Oh visited Bulgwang Stream in northwestern Seoul.
Chong then headed to the capital's eastern ward of Seongdong, where he served as its chief for three consecutive terms, to rally support. Oh plans to visit southwestern parts of Seoul and propose a residential redevelopment plan.
In the southeastern city of Daegu, a traditional conservative stronghold, PPP candidate Choo Kyung-ho faces off with DP candidate Kim Boo-kyum in a tight race.
In a survey conducted Monday and Tuesday by Ace Research and commissioned by Daegu MBC, Choo led with 47.1 percent, ahead of Kim at 45.7 percent.
Kim began campaigning Saturday at the city's Yongsan Station, with plans to visit Seomun Market, one of the country's largest traditional markets, at night.
Meanwhile, Choo visited a running event in the city before going to Daegu Samsung Lions Park to seek support from baseball fans.
In the country's second-largest city of Busan, Chun Jae-soo of the DP was leading PPP candidate Park Heong-joon, the city's incumbent mayor seeking a third term, in multiple polls released this week.
Eyes are also on the parliamentary by-elections that will fill 14 vacant National Assembly seats, with political heavyweights, such as Han Dong-hoon, former leader of the PPP, vying for positions.
In Busan's Buk-A constituency, independent Han is competing against Ha Jung-woo, former presidential secretary for artificial intelligence (AI) policy and future planning, and former PPP lawmaker Park Min-shik.
In a poll released by the NEC last Thursday, 73.6 percent of respondents said they will definitely vote in the upcoming elections. Of them, 39.4 percent said they intended to cast ballots during the early voting period.
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