South Koreans are divided over calls for a full re-election following ballot shortages during the June 3 local elections, with generational gaps emerging in public opinion, a poll released Friday showed.
In a survey conducted by Gallup Korea from June 9 to 11 of 1,002 people aged 18 and older nationwide, 44% supported the argument for a full re-election, while 48% were opposed.
By age group, 67% of respondents in their 20s (ages 18 to 29) agreed with holding a re-election, and 62% of those in their 30s were also in favor. By contrast, 56% of those in their 40s opposed a re-election, while 52% of those in their 50s and 63% of those in their 60s expressed opposition, showing a divide.
By political orientation, among respondents who said they support the People Power Party, 62% were in favor and 33% opposed. Among those who said they support the Democratic Party of Korea, 28% were in favor and 65% opposed.
Gallup Korea analyzed that "the inclination of those in their 20s and 30s toward a full re-election is presumed to stem from a tendency to prioritize fairness in the process over the outcome."
Respondents placed more weight on poor management by the National Election Commission than on electoral fraud regarding the ballot shortage. A total of 67% said they perceived it as "poor election management and an infringement of suffrage," while 25% responded it was "evidence of illegal election interference or an attempted fraudulent election." Eight percent withheld their opinion.
The various controversies surrounding the National Election Commission also affected voters' satisfaction with the local election results. Only 28% of respondents said they were "generally satisfied with the local election results," while 60% said they were "not satisfied." Among those dissatisfied with the results, the most cited reason was the "ballot shortage" (18%), followed by "electoral fraud" (13%) and "problems in the election process/poor management" (6%).
In the same survey, Gallup Korea also conducted a poll on preferences for "who would make a good future president." The results showed Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon at 9%, independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon at 8%, and former Rebuilding Korea Party leader Cho Kuk at 7%, followed by Prime Minister Kim Min-seok (5%), People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok (3%) and Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik (2%).
The survey was conducted through telephone interviews by interviewers using randomly extracted mobile virtual numbers. The margin of error is ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level, with a contact rate of 42.9% and a response rate of 11.3%. Further details can be found on the website of the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission.
