At Stake in this Election:

• All 300 seats in the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea

Government Structure:

• Chief of State and Head of Government: President YOON Suk Yeol (since 10 May 2022)
• Assembly: unicameral National Assembly (Gukhoe / 大韓民國國會)

Electoral System:

• The President is directly elected by a simple majority popular vote for a single 5-year term.
• 253 members of the National Assembly are directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote. The remaining 47 members are elected in a single national constituency. All members serve 4-year terms.

Last Election:

The last parliamentary elections were held on April 15, 2020. The Democratic Party won 180 seats, the United Future Party won 103, and the Justice Party won 1 seat. Voter turnout was 66%.

Information for Voters:

“Voting” from the National Election Commission of the Republic of Korea (available in English)

Main Parties in this Election:

• Democratic Party of Korea** / 더불어민주당[ (DPK)
  • Leader: Lee Jae-myung
  • Seats won in the last election: 156 seats out of 300
  • In 2022, the parties Open Democratic Party / 열린민주당 and New Wave / 새로운물결 joined the DPK
• People Power Party /국민의힘 (PPP)
  • Leader: Han Dong-hoon
  • Seats won in the last election: 114 seats out of 300
• Green-Justice Party / 정의당 (JP)
  • Leader: Kim Jun-woo
  • Seats won in the last election: 6 seats out of 300
• New Future Party / 새로운미래
  • Leader: Lee JNak-yon
  • Seats won in the last election: 5 seats out of 300

Population:

• Population: 51,628,117 (2022)

Gender Data:

• Female Population: 25,854,360 (2022)
• CEDAW Status: Signed 25 May 1983, Ratified 27 December 1984
• Gender Quota:  Yes, South Korea has legislated gender quotas for parliament and at the sub-national level. Political parties have also adopted voluntary gender quotas.
• Female Candidates in this election: Yes
• Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): 57 out of 299
• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 0.929 (Very high) (2024 estimate)  
• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: 19.8% (2024 estimate)

Disability Data:

• CRPD Status: Signed 30 March 2007, Ratified 11 December 2008
• Projected population with a disability: 8,260,498

IFES Resources:

• Does IFES have a presence in South Korea: No
• Election Access: Yes
• Election Judgements:  Yes