Turnout for overseas voting hits record high of 62.8 percent

Overseas voters living in the United States cast their ballots at a polling station at the consulate general in Los Angeles last Wednesday. [YONHAP]

Overseas voting turnout for the April 10 general election hit a record high of 62.8 percent, the National Election Commission (NEC) said Tuesday, seen as a harbinger of overall polling enthusiasm for next week.

A total of 92,923 people out of 147,989 eligible voters living abroad had cast their ballots, according to the state election watchdog, after overseas ballots were cast over six days between Wednesday and Monday at 220 polling stations in 115 countries.

Voter turnout appears high, as this is the first overseas ballot to be held since the Yoon Suk Yeol administration came into power.

By continent, Asia saw a turnout of 62.8 percent, the Americas 56.5 percent, Europe 73.5 percent, the Middle East 74 percent and 79.3 percent in Africa.

This marks the highest turnout since overseas voting was introduced in the 2012 general election, and also the first time voting abroad exceeded 60 percent.

In the past, turnout came to 45.7 percent in the 2012 general election, 41.4 percent in 2016 and 23.8 percent in 2020.

An NEC official said there were no significant changes in the overseas polling process and that the high figures indicate an overall "increase in voters' interest in this general election" and willingness to participate in voting.

In past elections, overseas voters generally skewed toward the liberal Democratic Party (DP). Some political analysts predict that the high overseas turnout could be advantageous for former presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung's Democratic Party, which currently holds a majority in the 300-seat National Assembly.

Overseas voter enthusiasm for parliamentary elections tends to be lower compared to presidential elections, which usually see turnout exceed 70 percent, as in 2022 when the conservative People Power Party (PPP) candidate, Yoon Suk Yeol, scored a narrow victory over the DP's Lee.

The 2020 voter turnout was especially low because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Early voting in the country will take place from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]