This will be the first legislative election to be held in South Korea following the formation of the People's Party and the enforcement of controversial Constitutional Court Rulings dissolving the left-wing Unified Progressive Party and mandating the redistricting of the Assembly's constituencies.
300 members of the National Assembly will be elected in the 2016 elections, of whom 253 will be elected from single-member constituencies on a first-past-the-post basis, and 47 from closed party lists through proportional representation by the Hare Quota largest remainder method, in accordance with South Korea's Public Official Election Act
The 2016 election for the National Assembly is to be held on Wednesday April 13,2016 in accordance with Article 34 of the Public Official Election Act, which specifies that Election Day for legislative elections is held on "the first Wednesday from the 50th day before the expiration of the [National Assembly members'] term of office"
Eligible voters must be registered and at least 19 years old on the day of the election and they must show an approved form of identification at the polling place
Campaigning for the election officially began on March 30, lasting until April 12,2016
Under South Korean law, candidates were only permitted to campaign in a limited fashion before the beginning of the designated period, including sending a maximum of five text messages publicizing themselves to each voter
Polls on Election Day are open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
4 major parties are contesting the 2016 election
- The Saenuri Party led by Kim Moo-sung, the conservative ruling party
- The Minjoo Party of Korea led on an interim basis by Kim Chong-in, the main liberal opposition party
- The People's Party led jointly by Ahn Cheol-soo and Chun Jung-bae, a centrist party formed in early 2016 from a split from the Minjoo Party of Korea
- The Justice Party led by standing chairwoman Sim Sang -jung, a left-wing progressive party
If the vote allows the ruling Saenuri Party to comfortably regain its majority over a divided opposition, as pollsters predict, it raises expectations the party will take the presidency in 2017, after Park's single term expires.
Criticism of Park's economic policies has taken a back seat to national security issues following North Korea's recent nuclear test and long-range rocket launch.
Hostility between the rival Koreas in election years has often been seen as helping the conservatives by allowing them to highlight their hard-line approach against the North. Liberals have traditionally backed rapprochement policies with the North.
Officials from the main opposition Minjoo Party have expressed worry that Saenuri could achieve something close to a two-thirds supermajority of the 300 seats in the new National Assembly.
Since losing its second consecutive presidential election in 2012, the Minjoo Party has struggled with factional infighting and lawmaker defections, and saw its seats decline from 127 to 102 in the current assembly.
In this year's general election, the Minjoo has been forced to compete for mainstream liberal votes with a new party created mostly by those who left Minjoo, including its former co-chairman, Ahn Cheol-soo, who is seen as a potential candidate for the 2017 presidential election.
Ahn's People's Party has focused its campaigning efforts in the southwest Jeolla region, which has traditionally been the core liberal support base. Some pundits predicted that a strong showing by the People's Party in the region could cost Minjoo as many as 20 to 30 seats.
South Korea's electorate is deeply divided along generational and ideological lines and also by fierce regional loyalties.
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