North Korean parliamentary election, 1948

North Korean parliamentary election, 1948

25 August 1948
All 572 seats to the Supreme People's Assembly
First party   Leader Kim Il-sung Party Workers' Party Alliance Fatherland Front Seats won 157 / 572
Elected Premier Kim Il-sung Fatherland Front

North Korea
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Parliamentary elections were held for the first Supreme People's Assembly in the Soviet-occupied North Korea on 25 August 1948.^[1] A total of 572 deputies were elected, of which 360 were reserved for representatives of South Korea. The North Korean government claimed that 77.8% of South Korean voters had taken part in underground elections to elect 1,000 delegates who would elect the 360 South Korean members of the SPA.^[2] Voters were presented with a single list from the Democratic Front for the Reunification of the Fatherland, which was dominated by the Workers' Party of Korea.

Only one candidate was presented in each constituency, all of which were selected by the WPK, although some ran under the banner of other parties or state organisations to verify the North Korean constitution, allowing worker democracy.^[3] Voter turnout was reported to be 99.97%, with 98.49% voting in favour of the candidates presented.^[4]

This election set the tone for all elections held in North Korea. The 98.49% total is the lowest vote share claimed by the Democratic Front in any election. In subsequent elections, the Democratic Front has claimed unanimous or near-unanimous support.

Its first session was held between 2 and 10 September, with two main declarations: "Statement on the Transfer of Power" and "The Political Program of the Government of the DPRK".

The first parliamentary United Nations-sponsored elections in U.S.-occupied South Korea had taken place three months earlier.

Results

References

Further reading

• Kim Il-sung (1980) [1948]. "Against the Elections of a Reactionary Separate Government in South Korea and for the Achievement of Korea's Reunification and Independence: Speech Made at the 25th Meeting of the Central Committee of the Democratic National United Front of North Korea, March 9, 1948". Kim Il Sung: Works. Pyongyang: Foreign Languages Publishing House. OCLC 827642144.