Polling stations close for 21st presidential election

Voters in the country voted all day, stopping by at polling stations to exercise their rights.

Ahn Sung-jin went out to hear their voices.

The 21st presidential election has come to an end.

"From 6 AM to 8 PM on Tuesday, more than 14,000 voting stations nationwide, including this one in Sadang-dong, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, were open."

Starting early in the morning with the older members of the population showing up as soon as the polling stations opened, to families with young children, throughout the 14 hours of voting, people continued to show up to cast their ballots, right up until the last minute before polling stations closed.

"This is my first vote ever, and I'm proud to be participating in it. I would like them to work on making Korea a better country to live in."

"Now that I've finished voting, I'm going to go to work right away. I hope someone honest becomes the president."

"Our economy is going through a difficult time right now, so I hope the new president can boost our economy domestically and internationally and also improve people's livelihoods."

After they headed out of the polling booths, many were seen taking pictures in front of the polling station with a ballot stamp on their hand.

This shows that a lot of Koreans are participating in an "I voted" movement.

There are also these kinds of certification sheets with art or characters on them, where people can get stamps to show that they've voted.

Voters came to exercise their right to vote in hopes of electing a president who'll lead South Korea through a pivotal period.

Ahn Sung-jin, Arirang News.