사전투표 시작...신분증만 있으면 전국 어디에서나
Starting today... the first ever early voting takes place for the presidential election set for May 9th.
So if you are unable to make time for voting because you will be traveling during the long holiday weekend or for some other reason... you can head to the polls earlier.
The polls will be open until tomorrow.
And... we connect with our Kwon Jang-ho, who's at one of the early voting stations at Incheon International Airport.
We hear that polls have opened about an hour ago,... have you seen many people come by?
Good morning, Jihye.
Yes, the early voting stations opened an hour ago, that's 6AM Korea time.
And already here at Incheon International Airport I would say a couple of hundred people have cast their vote, with some people queuing from as early as 5AM.
The polls will stay open till 6 p.m. today and tomorrow, and there are over 35-hundred stations around the country.
As long as you have your national ID card and are registered to vote, anyone can make use of this service.
It's the ninth time early voting has taken place in Korea since 2013, but it's the first time it is being used for a presidential election.
Over 20-percent of votes were cast in early voting during the last year's parliamentary elections, and the election commission office says it could be even bigger this time.
Right... and the committee is expecting a 15 percent early voting rate this time,... while all of the votes will be counted on the day of the election.
Jang-ho... since you're there... did you have a chance to talk to some of the early voters?
Well, tomorrow is Children's Day,... a national holiday here in Korea,... meaning there are many who are going on vacation to take advantage of the long weekend and they might not be back in time for the official election day on Tuesday.
So an early voting booth here at the airport today and tomorrow means those people have the option to make sure they don't miss out on the opportunity to vote.
But that can be one of any number of reasons why people vote early.
No prior reason needs to be given and it's entirely up to the individual.
I spoke to some people to see why they have decided to cast their ballots early.
"I decided to go on a long vacation and I won't be in Korea on Tuesday... so that's why I'm waiting to vote. It's our right and responsibility as a citizen to vote."
"I could have voted on Tuesday... but when I saw this here I decided to do it now. I already know who I'm going to vote for, so I didn't need to think twice about it."
At the close of each day, the ballot boxes in each district will be sealed and sent to their local government offices, where they will be kept safe under CCTV surveillance, until 8PM on Tuesday, when the official election period ends.
Back to you Ji-hye.
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