![cover image](https://wikiwandv2-19431.kxcdn.com/_next/image?url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b2/Emblem_of_the_Democratic_People%2527s_Republic_of_Korea.svg/640px-Emblem_of_the_Democratic_People%2527s_Republic_of_Korea.svg.png&w=640&q=50)
Elections in North Korea
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Elections in North Korea are held every four-to-five years for the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA), the country's national legislature, and every four years for Local People's Assemblies.[1][2] Each candidate is preselected by the North Korean government and there is no option to write in a different name, meaning that voters may either submit the ballot unaltered as a "yes" vote or request a pen to cross out the name on the ballot. Critics argue that North Korean elections are show elections which lack competition and allow the government to claim a veneer of pseudo-democratic legitimacy.[3] A person's vote is not secret, and those who cross off the name on a ballot are often subject to legal and professional consequences. According to official reports, turnout is near 100%.[1]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/PRK%2C_Nepal_236_%285076758792%29.jpg/640px-PRK%2C_Nepal_236_%285076758792%29.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/DPRK_election.jpg/640px-DPRK_election.jpg)
All seats are won by the ruling party or approved candidates.[4][failed verification] In 2010, the founding and ruling Workers' Party of Korea held 87.5% of the seats, with 7.4% for the Korean Social Democratic Party, 3.2% for the Chondoist Chongu Party, and 1.9% for independent deputies.[5]