A long queue for advance voting for next week's election is formed at a polling booth in Incheon International Airport.[Yonhap News Photo]
South Korean voters cast ballots in two-day advance voting ahead of next week's presidential election to pick the successor of jailed ex-president Park Geun-hye who is on trial after being ousted for her role in a corruption scandal.
Unlike absentee voting, advance voting allows over 42.4 million eligible voters to cast ballots at any polling booths set up at 3,507 places including ports, railway stations and airports. Voters formed a long queue at a booth in Incheon International Airport, the country's main gateway crowded with local travelers going abroad.
The system was introduced for the first time in 2014 to boost turnout. In parliamentary elections last year, turnout for early voting stood at 12.2 percent.
As of 4:00 pm (0700 GMT), 9.45 percent of all eligible voters cast ballots, according to the National Election Commission. Commission officials say the new system will lead to a high turnout rate. The rate in the 2012 presidential election was 75.8 percent.
In an effort to attract young internet-savvy voters, election authorities lifted a ban on online posts of photographs showing them at polling stations.
Of 13 candidates, Moon Jae-in from the main opposition Democratic Party has been favored to win the May 9 election. In the latest surveys, the former human rights lawyer maintained a comfortable lead with the margin standing at more than 15 percent.
Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
