[Editorial] Let’s Cast a Reasonable Vote

Today is the 17th general election. The nation will go to the polls to elect 299 National Assemblymen, which means that our nation will banish old politics and establish a new political structure. It is most important that the nation should go to the polls during the day. The reason why general election day is a holiday is not for the whole nation to go to a picnic, but to go to the polls.

Some say that there is no eligible candidate for voters to elect. They assert abstention from voting is kind of a declaration of intention. However, this is wrong thinking. The election is the way of sorting to find even the second best, unless voters find the best. If the turnout of voters is low, it will distort the representative nature in a representative democracy because that result of the polls will be different from the nation’s will.

This general election is meaningful because it gives notice of a new political atmosphere, such as the change of composition between the government party and the opposition party, and the appearance of a progressive party. Meanwhile, after the presidential impeachment, the inherent meaning of the general election, such as candidates and policy evaluations, was heavily impaired. There were many image campaigns and examples of cronyism based on regional biases, fasting, haircutting and the traditional bowing and walking ceremonies.

Voters going to the polls should reconsider whether they have been thrown into confusion or not because of those image campaigns. So voters should think what decision is really best for our nation.

Each voter may cast two ballots: one for a district candidate and the other for a proportional candidate. In the case of a district candidate, each voter should consider which candidate is good for the region, nation and political progress. A good way to do this is to look at the personal information of a candidate from the National Election Commission.

In the case of a proportional candidate, each voter should keep in mind the future vision of each party based on the past and current situation of each party. At first, voters should analyze the policies and possibilities of realization among several parties in order to cast a reasonable vote. The future of the nation depends on it.