Preparations completed in North Korea for March 9 parliamentary elections

The Central Electoral Commission (CEC) of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has completed the registration of candidates running for the Supreme People's Assembly (parliament) (SPA), the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Thursday. Elections to the Republic's top legislature will be held on March 9.

Representatives of Party committees, electoral commissions at industrial enterprises and in agricultural cooperatives inform the population in detail of the importance of the event. The slogan "Let us greet the elections with political enthusiasm and brillianl work achievements!' is played on the radio and television channels.

This will be the first elections of deputies to the SPA since Kim Jong Un came to power in December 2011. The DPRK leader was officially registered as a candidate running for parliament in Pyongyang's Electoral District 111, where the military constitute a majority.
The DPRK's supreme legislature consists of 687 parliamentarians. Members of Parliament, as a rule, gather in the capital once a year to endorse the country's budget and a package of most important bills during a one-day session. In the interim between the sessions, legislative power is concentrated in the hands of the SPA Presidium.