As of 5 p.m. on the 30th, the cumulative voter turnout for the second day of the 21st presidential election early voting has been recorded at 32.95%. Although the turnout on the first day was 2 percentage points higher than that of the 20th presidential election, it recorded a lower turnout this afternoon compared to the 20th presidential election.
According to the National Election Commission, a total of 14,625,746 voters had completed their ballots out of a total of 44,391,871 eligible voters since the early voting began at 6 a.m. on the second day.
The current voter turnout is 1.74 percentage points lower than the early voting turnout during the same period for the 20th presidential election in 2022, which recorded the highest early voting turnout since the introduction of early voting in 2014 at 34.69%.
This early voting recorded the highest figure for a nationwide election during the same period up until the previous day. However, the voter turnout has decreased compared to the 20th presidential election, widening the gap further.
An official from the National Election Commission noted, "Unlike the previous presidential election, which had early voting on Friday and Saturday, this election is only taking place on weekdays." If the current trend continues, the final early voting turnout is expected to record a figure lower than that of the 20th presidential election (36.93%).
The current turnout is 3.28 percentage points higher than the voter turnout (29.67%) recorded during the same period of the 22nd National Assembly election last year.
The region with the highest voter turnout so far is Jeollanam-do at 54.39%. It is followed by Jeollabuk-do at 50.90% and Gwangju at 49.92%.
The lowest turnout was recorded in Daegu at 24.13%, followed by Busan at 28.78% and Gyeongsangbuk-do at 29.86%.
In the metropolitan area, the voter turnout was recorded at 32.43% in Seoul, 31.11% in Gyeonggi-do, and 31.08% in Incheon.
The early voting, which started on the 29th, will conclude today. Voting hours are from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., and participants must bring identification and visit the early voting location.