The 1987 North Korean local elections were a series of elections held in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) on 22 November 1987 to elect deputies to the local People’s Assemblies at the provincial (province, city, county) and municipal (district, township) levels.
Key facts
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Date of voting | 22 November 1987 |
| Electoral bodies | Provincial People’s Assemblies, city and county People’s Assemblies, and district/ township People’s Assemblies |
| Number of deputies elected | Official reports state that 27,497 deputies were elected to the various local assemblies. |
| Reported voter turnout | The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) announced a turnout of 99.97 % of eligible voters. |
| Approval rate for candidates | All candidates were reported to have received 100 % of the votes cast in their favor. |
| Political context | The elections took place during the leadership of Kim Il‑sun, who had become the Supreme Leader of North Korea in 1994; in 1987 he was serving as the de facto head of the Workers’ Party of Korea. The local elections were part of the regular electoral cycle that, according to North Korean law, occurs every four to five years for local assemblies. |
| International observation | No independent or foreign electoral observers were permitted to monitor the voting process; therefore, external verification of turnout and approval figures is unavailable. |
| Legal framework | Elections were conducted under the Constitution of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (adopted in 1972) and the electoral law governing the election of local People's Assembly deputies. |
Procedural overview
- Candidate nomination – All candidates were nominated by mass organizations, the Korean Workers’ Party, or other state‑affiliated bodies. Nominees typically represented the party or affiliated mass organizations.
- Voting method – Voters received a single ballot listing the single candidate for each seat. The ballot could be either approved (by dropping it into the ballot box) or rejected (by crossing out the name). Official reports indicated that virtually no ballots were rejected.
- Results announcement – The Central Election Committee, a state organ, compiled and released the official results, emphasizing near‑universal participation and unanimous support for the candidates.
Significance
The 1987 local elections continued the pattern of mass elections in North Korea in which the regime reports near‑total voter participation and unanimous approval of candidates. These elections are used by the government to demonstrate internal legitimacy and to mobilize the populace for state initiatives. Because of the lack of independent verification, the reported statistics are considered by external analysts to reflect state‑controlled narratives rather than competitive democratic processes.
References
- Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) – official release, 23 November 1987.
- Constitution of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (1972).
- Academic analyses of North Korean electoral practices (e.g., and M. Kim, Political System of North Korea, 1994).
No independent international observers were present; consequently, independent verification of turnout and approval percentages is unavailable.
