Korea’s 20th legislative election will be held this year on April 13th.
For the first time, absentee and early voting will be held simultaneously. And to boost voter turnout, voting rights have been expanded and changes have been made to the ballot papers. For a closer look at what will be new this year, Lee Hee-jung joins me in the studio with the details.
[REPORTER] Lee Hee-jung
This is a sample of the revised ballot that will be used at the upcoming legislative election. Unlike previous ballots, each square has been spread out with spaces in between them to prevent voters' marks overlapping more than one square.
Another change is the introduction of early voting. The law for this change was passed in late 2013 but this will be the first time it will be applied to a legislative election.
SLUG ] Early voting April 8-9
Five days before the big day, so that’s April 8th, early elections will take place over two consecutive days.
More people will be eligible to vote too.
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Those on probation for general offenses, excluding crimes related to elections for public office, will be able to vote this April. Same goes for those sentenced to under one year in prison.
And all candidates - including preliminary candidates - will be required to disclose criminal records and academic backgrounds. In the past, this was only mandatory after being confirmed as a final candidate.
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More people will be allowed to watch the ballot-counting process firsthand, and for the first time, candidates and their spouses will be permitted to observe the ballot-counting as well.
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Candidates, spouses may observe ballot-counting in person
Candidates will also be required to submit a braille version of their campaign for voters who are visually challenged.
Interview)
Kim Heon-sang / Jeju Election Commission
For the first time, three different types of voting will take place ahead of the actual April 13 election. Early voting, overseas absentee voting, and absentee voting for those who will be aboard ships. We will try to leave absolutely no room for error…
인터뷰) 김헌상 제주특별자치도선거관리위원회 홍보과장
4월 13일 선거 외에 사전투표, 재외투표, 선상투표 3가지가
처음으로 동시에 실시하게 되는 선거입니다.
저희 절차사무와 관련해서 한치의 흠이 없이...
Camera]
Hyeon Gwang-hoon
How much of an impact these changes will make on voter turnout remains to be seen. The previous legislative election in 2012 had an average voter turnout of 54.2% nationwide… with Jeju recording 54.7%.