Local elections will be held in Korea this June, and foreigners residing in Korea will also be given the right to vote in the elections.
Of course, not all foreigners are given the right to vote, and only foreigners with some status of residence, such as permanent residents, can vote.
According to the current Public Official Election Act, foreigners who have passed three years from the date of obtaining permanent resident status are granted the right to vote in local elections (Article 15 (2)). can’t
Article 15 (Election Rights) of the Public Official Election Act
② Persons 18 years of age or older who fall under any of the following subparagraphs as of the base date for filling out the electoral roll under Article 37 (1) shall be members of the parliament and the head of the local government to be elected in the district. have the right to vote
(omitted) _ 3. Foreigners who have passed 3 years from the date of acquisition of permanent residence status under Article 10 of the 「Immigration Control Act」 and are listed in the alien registration book of the relevant local government pursuant to Article 34 of the same Act
Article 10 (Status of Residence) Foreigners who wish to enter Korea must have a status of stay that falls under any of the following subparagraphs.
- General status of residence: A status of residence that limits the period of stay in the Republic of Korea under this Act
- Permanent Residency Status: Status of residence for permanent residence in Korea
If you look at the media reports, if you look at the ‘foreign voters’ data that Rep. Jung Woo-taek received from the National Assembly Budget Office, the total number of foreign voters exercising their right to vote in this year’s local elections was 126,668 (as of March), compared to four years ago. It is estimated that the number of people increased by 20,000.
Currently, the voting right of foreigners applies only to local elections, and does not apply to general elections or presidential elections in which members of the National Assembly are elected. Of course, even though there are over 100,000 foreigners, it can be said that they do not decide whether to win or lose in local elections because they do not live in one area. The possibility of winning or losing in an election cannot be ruled out.
Depending on the institutional purpose of the relevant laws and regulations, foreigners may not be excluded from the elections for the basic assembly, but some adjustments are necessary, such as changing the three-year rule after permanent residence in the provision of voting rights.
