Voters wait in front of a polling station in Jamsil in Seoul's Songpa District, past 9 p.m. Wednesday, as voting was extended to 10 p.m. from 6 p.m. due to a shortage of ballots. Yonhap
The turnout for Wednesday's local elections was tallied at 61 percent as of 11 p.m., according to the National Election Commission.
According to the election watchdog, 27.2 million out of 44.6 million eligible voters cast their ballots. The final turnout figure had not been confirmed as of 11 p.m., as ballot shortages at polling stations in southern Seoul forced voting to extend until around 10 p.m. for those who were already in line before closing time.
Early voting on Friday and Saturday drew more than 10 million voters for a 23.5 percent turnout — a record high for a local election, surpassing the 20.6 percent mark set in 2022.
Wednesday's turnout was higher than the 2022 local elections, which recorded 50.9 percent.
