South Korea Awaits Election Day Results

S E O U L, S O U T H  K O R E A, April 15 -- Today is a beautiful spring day here — but for South Korea's political leaders, it's full of anticipation and dread.

In the last month, politics in the country have been shaken by a series of events and revelations that put an added emphasis on this contest.

And with voters casting their ballots, 299 of South Korea's assemblymen are waiting to hear the mandate from their fellow citizens.

Election Day is a national holiday, allowing people ample time to head to the polls, but analysts and party officials have expressed worry all week that the holiday would have just the opposite effect.

Rather than vote, they say, vacation-starved Koreans would choose to spend the day outside or head to one of the country's many national parks for a four-day weekend.

On the Outside

In Yeouido Park, just three hundred yards from where the country's National Assembly meets, thousands of people have gathered to enjoy the sunny and cool spring afternoon.

Parents are helping their kids pilot bicycles, young couples are stumbling around on rollerblades and men are crowding onto five basketball courts for pick-up games.

But on the sidelines of a friendly round of hoops, 28-year-old banker William Jun says he hasn't voted today and doesn't expect many of the other 20-somethings on the court to have voted either.

"Younger people in Korea want to see the country get better, but they're not interested in politics," explains Jun, a tall, lanky man sporting protective goggles and working up a good sweat from the game and the heat.

Jun adds that he registered outside of the city and was therefore unable to vote in Seoul. "People want to be outside, enjoying the holiday."

Gathering Political Storm

There are more than 35 million registered voters in South Korea and they all have a lot at stake.