The early voting for the 21st presidential election concluded with a turnout of 34.74% after two days of heated participation on the 30th. On its first day, it broke the record, showing an even hotter start than the 20th presidential election, but ultimately could not surpass the weekday barrier and fell short of the 20th presidential election in 2022, which had a turnout of 36.93%.

According to the National Election Commission, 15,423,607 out of 44,391,871 voters nationwide participated in the early voting over the two days from the 29th to the 30th. This is the second-highest figure since early voting was introduced in the national elections in 2014.

The turnout on the first day was 19.58%, the highest ever, and 2.01 percentage points higher than the first day of the 20th presidential election (17.57%). However, the upward trend stalled on the second day, and the final turnout was recorded as 2.19 percentage points lower than the 20th presidential election.

On the second day of early voting for the 21st presidential election, on the morning of the 30th, citizens are casting their votes at the early voting location set up at the Jeonghyeon Tennis Center in Gwangseong-gu, Suwon City. /News 1

Analysts noted that the results were significantly influenced by the weekday voting. While early voting for the 20th presidential election was held on Friday and Saturday, this time it took place over the two weekdays of Thursday and Friday. This limited participation from voters such as office workers and students who find it challenging to vote during weekdays.

A National Election Commission official explained, 'The fact that it was conducted only on weekdays affected the turnout.'

Regionally, the Honam region, which has a strong progressive inclination, led the voting enthusiasm. Jeollanam-do had a turnout of 56.50%, Jeollbuk-do 53.01%, and Gwangju 52.12%, all exceeding 50%. In contrast, the conservative-leaning Yeongnam region had lower turnouts, with Daegu at 25.63%, Busan 30.37%, Gyeongsangbuk-do 31.52%, and Gyeongsangnam-do 31.71%, all falling below the national average. The metropolitan area also did not meet the national average, with Seoul at 34.28%, Incheon 32.79%, and Gyeonggi 32.88%.

Political commentator Lee Jong-geun interpreted, 'Honam shows a strong political efficiency regarding party support, while Yeongnam reflects distrust in early voting and a relaxed atmosphere.'

On the second day of early voting for the 21st presidential election, on the 30th, early voting staff are conducting the sorting of ballots in the presence of observers and the Fair Election Observers at the early voting site set up at the Eulji Nuri Center in Jung-gu, Seoul. /Yonhap News