The Intelligence from The Economist The gloves are on: South Koreans vote
Apr 15, 2020
Hal Hodson, The Economist’s Asia technology correspondent, dives into South Korea's innovative response to the COVID-19 pandemic during legislative elections. He discusses how masked campaigners and voters navigated the process amidst strict health protocols. Hodson explores futuristic contact tracing technologies developed by tech giants, emphasizing privacy concerns and decentralization of data. Also touched upon are the pandemic's potential effects on birth rates, exploring historical trends of increased intimacy versus decreased planned pregnancies.
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North Korean Defector Runs for Office
- Tae-yong, a former North Korean deputy ambassador to Britain, defected in 2016.
- Now, he's running for office in South Korea's Gangnam district.
Election Day Precautions
- South Korean elections required masks, distancing, and hand sanitizing.
- Voters' temperatures were checked, and they briefly lowered masks for ID verification.
Holding Elections Amidst a Pandemic
- South Korea proceeded with elections despite the pandemic, unlike Britain or France.
- Their low COVID-19 case numbers for nine days straight suggested it was safe.