The nationwide early voting turnout for the 9th simultaneous local elections reached 17.5 percent as of 1 p.m. on Friday, the second day of early voting, more than 2 percentage points higher than at the same time during the previous local elections.
According to the National Election Commission, 7,812,780 voters out of a total 44,649,908 eligible voters had cast their ballots as of 1 p.m., bringing the turnout to 17.5 percent.
The figure is 2.06 percentage points higher than the 15.44 percent early voting rate recorded at the same time during the 8th simultaneous local elections in 2022.
By region, South Jeolla Province posted the highest turnout nationwide at 31.1 percent, the only one among the country's 17 metropolitan cities and provinces to surpass 30 percent. North Jeolla Province followed at 27.54 percent, Gangwon at 21.0 percent and Gwangju at 20.88 percent.
Daegu recorded the lowest turnout nationwide at 13.79 percent. Gyeonggi at 15.26 percent, Incheon at 15.84 percent and Busan at 15.88 percent also fell below the national average. Seoul came in close to the national average at 17.21 percent.
Early voting began at 6 a.m. the previous day and ends at 6 p.m. on Friday. Voters can cast their ballots at any early voting station nationwide by presenting a photo ID such as a national identification card, driver's license or passport.
A total of 3,571 early voting stations have been set up across the country. Polling station locations can be confirmed through the National Election Commission website or the commission's main phone line (1390).
