Chairman of People Power Party Urges Voters to Support Early Voting Ahead of General Election

Han Dong-hoon, chairman of the People Power Emergency Response Committee and general election committee chairman, is appealing to voters for support along with Anseong candidate Kim Hak-yong at the Gongdo District intersection in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province, on the 31st. 2024.03.31 Reporter Moon Jae-won

Ahead of the April 10 general election advance voting to be held on the 5th and 6th, the People Power Party is outwardly taking an active encouraging stance. But the inside is complicated. In a situation where mistrust of early voting still persists among the ruling party’s supporters and opposition party supporters are expressing their intention to vote early more than ever, encouraging early voting may have the effect of causing more opposition supporters to come to the polls.

In a poll conducted by Gallup Korea on 1,500 voters on the 18th and 19th at the request of the National Election Commission (NEC), 41.4% of respondents said they would vote on the early voting day (sampling error is ±2.5 at the 95% confidence level). % points, response rate 16.7%, wired/wireless phone interview method). This is a significant increase from the surveys conducted during the 21st general election four years ago (26.7%) and the 20th presidential election two years ago (27.4%). The actual early voting rate for the 21st general election was 26.69% (66.2% overall), and the early voting rate for the 20th presidential election was 36.93% (77.1% overall). In the political world, there are predictions that the advance voter turnout in this general election could exceed 30% for the first time in a general election.

In a survey commissioned by the National Election Commission, among people in their 50s and younger who have a strong tendency to support the opposition party, the intention to vote in advance was close to 50% across all age groups, while among those in their 60s (36.8%) and over 70 years old (24.0%), who have strong support for the ruling party, they were more likely to vote in advance than in advance. The intention to vote was strong. In an opinion poll conducted by public opinion polling agency Chowon C&I on 4,041 voters from the 25th to the 27th at the request of Herald Economy (sampling error is ±1.5% points at 95% confidence level, response rate 3.9%, mobile phone ARS method), on the day of advance voting, 66.2% of respondents who said they would vote said they would vote for the Democratic Party of Korea candidate as their constituency representative (19.8% for the People Power Party candidate). On the other hand, among those intending to vote on the main voting day, many responded that they would vote for the People Power Party candidate (47.3%) (Democratic Party candidate 39.5%).

This survey result is interpreted by some conservatives as the theory of early voting manipulation and election fraud still persists. There was also an incident in which a far-right YouTuber in his 40s, who had been raising claims of election fraud, was caught installing illegal cameras in about 40 places, including advance voting booths for the national general election.

Accordingly, the ruling party’s attitude toward early voting is complex. Since supporters of the opposition party are expected to show up at the early voting site in large numbers, there is no choice but to encourage the ruling party supporters to participate in the early voting as well. This is because, while supporters of the opposition party can participate in voting for two days on the preliminary voting day and three days until the main voting day, supporters of the ruling party can participate in voting only on the main voting day, even if they intend to vote, the possibility of not being able to vote may be relatively high. However, simply encouraging early voting can increase the early voting rate of opposition supporters who are stimulated by this, rather than increasing the voting rate of supporters. On the 28th, Rep. Hong Seok-jun, Deputy Chief of the General Situation Room of the People Power Party’s National Election Commission, said, “Traditionally, some of our supporters still raise issues with early voting, so we do not plan to encourage early voting,” which reflects the complex thinking of the ruling party. shows.

The People Power Party’s official position is that it will do its best to encourage early voting. Regarding early voting, Emergency Response Committee Chairman Han Dong-hoon said at a support rally in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province on the 31st, “I know there are people who are worried, but trust me. “I and our government will definitely monitor it,” he said, adding, “Whether it is early voting or the main vote, go out and vote unconditionally.” Floor leader Yoon Jae-ok, chairman of the joint campaign committee, immediately denied Rep. Hong’s remarks on the day they were made, saying, “This is not the party’s official position.” In Yo-han, chairman of the People’s Future, a proportional satellite party of the People Power Party, held a press conference to encourage early voting at the headquarters in Yeouido on this day.

2024-03-31 04:32:00
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