North Korea to hold local elections on July 21

ANKARA

North Korea on Tuesday announced to conduct elections for its provincial assemblies as well as local bodies on July 21.

Quoting officials of country’s Supreme People’s Assembly, the state-run Korea Central News Agency (KCNA), said that polls will elect deputies to provincial people’s assemblies and to city and district municipalities.

The vote comes after North Korea held a nationwide vote for its parliament – known as Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA) in March to elect 687 deputies.

The latest polls will now elect mayors, governors, and other local officials, the news agency said.

In the previous elections in July 2015, as many as 28,452 deputies were elected for a four-year term. Citizens over the age of 17 are eligible to cast ballots.

North Korea is ruled by a single party. But the elections for the SPA and provincial assemblies are held every four-to-five years. Local elections are held since 1999.

The official voter turnout in 2015 polls -- the first conducted under the leadership of Kim Jong-un -- was recorded as high as 99.9%.

The elected deputies for local assemblies meet once or twice a year, to decide on budget allocations and other regional issues.