At stake in this election:

• 299 seats in the National Assembly (Kukhoe)

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President LEE Myung-bak
• Head of Government: Prime Minister HAN Seung-soo
• Assembly: South Korea has a unicameral National Assembly (Kukhoe) with 299 seats.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by plurality vote to serve a 5-year term.
• The Prime Minister is appointed by the president with the approval of the parliament.
• In the National Assembly (Kukhoe), 245 members are elected by plurality vote in single-member constituencies to serve 4-year terms and 54 members are elected through a closed-list proportional representation system to serve 4-year terms.

Main parties in the electoral race:

• Party: Grand National Party (GNP) / 한나라당, Hannara-dang
  • Leader: KANG Jae-sup
  • Seats won in this election: 153
  • Seats won in last election: 128
• Party: United Democratic Party (UDP) / 통합민주당, Tongham Minju-dang
  • Leader: SOHN Hak-kyu
  • Seats won in this election: 81
  • Seats won in last election: 141
• Party: Democratic Labor Party (DLP) / 민주노동당, Minju Nodong-dang
  • Leader: CHUN Young-se
  • Seats won in this election: 5
  • Seats won in last election: 9
• Party: Liberty Forward Party (LFP) / 자유선진당, Jayu Seonjin-dang
  • Leader: SIM Dae-pyung
  • Seats won in this election: 18
  • Seats won in last election: N/A
• Party: Renewal of Korea Party (CKP) / 창조한국당, Changjo Hanguk-dang*****
  • Leader: MOON Kook-hyun
  • Seats won in this election: 3
  • Seats won in last election: N/A
• Party: Park's Party / 친박연대, Chin-bak Yeon-dae
  • Leader: SEO Cheong-won
  • Seats won in this election: 14
  • Seats won in last election: N/A
• Independent(s): Independents
  • Leader: N/A
  • Seats won in this election: 25

***** Formerly Creative Korean Party

Last Parliamentary election:

• Parliamentary elections were last held on April 15, 2004.

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 48,948,698 (2008)
• Registered Voters: 37,796,035 (April 2008)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 24,560,861 (2008)

·         Is South Korea a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (25 May 1983)

·         Has South Korea ratified CEDAW: Yes (27 December 1984)

·         Gender Quota: Yes[5]

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 41 (following the 2008 elections)

·         Human Development Index Position: 17 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A

Disability Data:

·         Is South Korea a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)

·         Has South Korea ratified CRPD: Yes (11 December 2008)

·         Population with a disability: 7,342,304 (est.)