The National Election Commission announced that the registration of candidates for the October 16 by-elections, which took place over two days from September 26, concluded with a total of 19 people registering in five constituencies, showing an average competition rate of 3.8 to 1.

Regardless of whether or not they will participate in this election, according to Article 150 of the Public Official Election Act, there are four parties: Democratic Party of Korea (given party number of 1), People Power Party (given party nu mber of 2), Rebuilding Korea Party (given party number of 3), and Reform Party (given party number of 4) that are subject to nationwide unified symbols. The symbols for parties with seats in the National Assembly are determined in alphabetical order by party name for parties without seats, and for independent candidates, they are determined by drawing lots.

Basic information such as the candidates’ occupation, education, and career, as well as key information such as assets, military service, tax payment, and criminal records, can be checked on the National Election Commission’s election statistics system (http://info.nec.go.kr).

Meanwhile, voters for by-elections can visit their local district, city, or county office from September 29 to October 1 to view the voter list, and if there are any omissions, errors, or ineligible voters, they can file an objection with the district, city, or county office. The voter list will be finalized on October 4.