SOUTH KOREA: Effective pandemic performance rewarded

South Korea was the first country to hold a national election during the pandemic, with its legislative election taking place in April. In February, South Korea was second only to China for the number of COVID-19 cases. In response, the government introduced an approach that included testing, tracing and quarantining, which became recognised as the international standard and won high levels of public buy-in. As a result, COVID-19 deaths per capita were among the lowest in the world and heavy, long-term lockdown measures and the associated economic impacts were avoided.

The election results suggested approval of the government’s handling of the crisis.