Voter turnout for South Korea's 9th nationwide local elections and parliamentary by-elections reached 19.0% as of noon on Tuesday, 4.0 percentage points higher than at the same time during the 8th local elections held in 2022.
According to the National Election Commission, 8,490,711 out of 44,649,908 eligible voters had cast their ballots by noon. By region, Daegu recorded the highest turnout at 23.7%, followed by North Gyeongsang Province at 21.7%. Gangwon followed at 21.6%, South Gyeongsang at 21.2%, Ulsan at 20.6%, South Chungcheong at 20.2%, Busan at 20.0%, Daejeon at 19.8% and North Chungcheong at 19.7%.
In the greater Seoul area, Seoul registered 18.6%, followed by Gyeonggi at 18.4% and Incheon at 18.2%. Gwangju posted the lowest turnout at 13.1%, with South Jeolla at 14.9% and North Jeolla at 14.8%. These regions had all recorded high early voting turnout, which appears to have contributed to the relatively lower participation in main-day voting.
At this pace, the final turnout including early voting is expected to reach the mid-50% to 60% range.
Polls will remain open until 6 p.m. Tuesday. Voters can cast their ballots at polling stations in their registered districts of residence. They must bring a photo ID such as a national ID card, passport or driver's license. Mobile IDs are also accepted.
