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North Korea Ramps Up Parliamentary Election Preparations for Next Week

North Korea is intensifying preparations to elect deputies to its 15th Supreme People's Assembly next week. Election committees have been established at provincial, city, county, and military levels across the country. Meetings are being held nationwide to review the qualifications of potential candidates for the legislature, which is widely seen as endorsing decisions made by the ruling Workers' Party. The voting procedure requires citizens opposing a candidate to publicly strike through the name, effectively removing secrecy from the process.

Key Points: North Korea Prepares for Parliamentary Elections

  • Elections scheduled for March 17
  • Committees formed at all levels
  • Candidate review meetings underway
  • Voting system lacks secrecy
2 min read

North Korea accelerates preparations for parliamentary elections next week

North Korea accelerates preparations for Supreme People's Assembly elections, forming committees and reviewing candidates for the vote scheduled next week.

"Officials who have earned high public trust... have been registering as candidates for assembly deputies. - KCNA"

Seoul, March 11

North Korea is intensifying preparations for its upcoming parliamentary elections scheduled for next week, including forming election committees and reviewing candidates for the Supreme People's Assembly, according to a report by Yonhap News Agency citing North Korean state media on Wednesday.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the country is set to elect deputies to the 15th Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) on Sunday, following last month's major ruling party congress. Parliamentary elections in North Korea are typically held every five years, and the upcoming vote will be the first since 2019.

According to the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), election committees have been established at provincial, city, county and military levels across the country as part of preparations for the vote, Yonhap News Agency reported.

The State media also indicated that meetings are being conducted nationwide to assess the qualifications of potential candidates for the legislature. The process appears similar to a primary stage aimed at selecting a single candidate for each electoral district.

KCNA stated that officials enjoying public confidence, along with workers, farmers, people from different sectors of society and military personnel, have registered as candidates for deputy positions in the assembly.

"Officials who have earned high public trust, workers, farmers and people from all walks of life, as well as soldiers, have been registering as candidates for assembly deputies," the KCNA stated as quoted by Yonhap News Agency.

Authorities have also completed the registration of all eligible voters in each constituency, according to the report.

Under the voting procedure, citizens cast ballots in favour of a candidate by placing them in the ballot box, while those opposing a candidate must strike through the candidate's name - a system that effectively removes secrecy from the voting process, Yonhap News Agency reported.

The Supreme People's Assembly, described in the constitution as the highest organ of state authority in North Korea, is widely regarded by analysts as primarily endorsing decisions made by the ruling Workers' Party of Korea.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

P
Priya S
Reading this while our own election season is heating up. The contrast is stark. Our elections might be chaotic, but at least they're real. Hope the people of North Korea get to experience true democracy one day.
A
Aman W
The report says "officials enjoying public confidence" are registering. In a closed society, how is public confidence even measured? This seems like a pre-decided formality. Our neighbours have a long way to go.
S
Sarah B
From a geopolitical perspective, this is likely about consolidating internal power structures after their party congress. The parliament is just a rubber stamp, as the article says. Interesting to watch, but not a real democratic exercise.
V
Vikram M
"Highest organ of state authority" but analysts call it a rubber stamp. That says it all. Makes you appreciate the noise, debate, and actual power of our own Lok Sabha, even with all its flaws.
K
Kavya N
The focus seems to be on the procedure and not the choice. Forming committees, registering voters... but for what? A single candidate per district? It's a play being performed, not an election. Feel for the ordinary citizens there.

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