Do you know that 2012 can be called “the year of worldwide elections“? Many countries have held or will be holding important elections this year,including South Korea, USA, China, Taiwan, Russia, Finland, India, Egypt, Kenya, and Venezuela. Some of these countries, such as South Korea and USA,will be voting for their president, and some others, like Taiwan and China,will vote for their generalissimo, who represents their country. An election is a very important event because it is through this event that the people select their representative/s. The interest of the South Korean citizens, especially the young ones, in the elections and in politics has been increasing of late due to the country’s economic stagnancy, expensive tuition fees, and famous podcast program “I Am Kkomsu,” among other reasons. These make the young people aware of how politics affects their lives, and how important it is to elect the right person into office. To commemorate the “year of worldwide elections,” ST introduces various elections to you.

 

South Korean congressional election

In the 19^thcongressional election on April 11, the South Korean people elected the members of Congress. Most people expected the Democratic Party to win most of the seats because of the more-than-five-year-old anger of the people at President Lee Myung-bak and Saenuridang. The results, however, came as a surprise to many. Only one month before the election, Saenuridang’s approval rating was comparatively lower than that of the Democratic Party, but it went on to win most of the congressional seats.

Many critics and media people view these results as signifying the Democratic Party’s defeat rather than Saenuridang’s victory. Actually, the 19^th general election was implemented amidst an environment that was absolutely favorable for the Democratic Party. Nevertheless, the Democratic Party failed to show its vision or abilities, and these mistakes led to its self-destruction and to the minimal support that it got from the citizens.

Even though Saenuridang won most of the congressional seats, it does not translate into Saenuridang’s total victory. It failed to get the votes that it needed in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do, “a measure of the public sentiment” of South Korea. Many young voters who want to change the society are harboring an antipathy towards Saenuridang because it is conservative and does not listen to the voices of the youth.

Through this election, two outstanding facts became evident. First, the regionalism between Yeungnam and Honam is still pervasive among the people. The data show that Saenuridang won most of the seats that it won in Yenugnam, and that the Democratic Party won most of the seats that it won in Honam. Regionalism must vanish for the further development of South Korea’s politics. Second, the Unified Progressive Party made a breakthrough in the election. Although it failed to form a floor negotiation group in the Congress, it became the third biggest political party in the country, for the first time in the history of its existence as a political party. The Unified Progressive Party promises to fulfill its mission so as not to disappoint those who voted for it.

The 19^thcongressional election is finished, and it’s time for the presidential race, which will culminate in December 2012. Due to Saenuridang’s victory, the chances that Park Guen Hye, a powerful presidential candidate,will be elected president increased. At the same time, another presidential candidate, Moon Jae In,is showing much power. He managed to get elected in his opponent’s homeground, Busan, and the total election turnout showed Saenuidang getting 1.2 million votes less than the sum of all the other parties’ votes. These results have made the upcoming presidential race more interesting.

 

South Korean presidential election

Many countries, including South Korea, have held or will be holding their presidential election this year. There are numerous rumors regarding who’s going to be elected president, but we actually don’t know this. With this article, you will get to know each candidate and their winning aspects.

 

1.      Park Geun-hye, Sae Nuri

Park Geun-hye is one of the most powerful conservative candidates. She is distinct from many candidates. She is a female candidate, she doesn’t have much political experience, and she’s the daughter of former president Park Jeong-hee. What’s most important, however, is that she possesses leadership skills.

-    No political experience, but possesses leadership skills

She hasn’t actually gained much influence as a politician,but she represented Han Nara after a huge fall in 2005, and she perfectly reformed her party. She steered her party towards victory in majority of the congressional seats, thus showing her political prowess.

-    Female candidate

Many people still think negatively of female presidents,but for people who support progressive ideas and for most women, it’ll have a good effect.

-    Daughter of former president Park Jeong-hee

This fact is controversial because as she was raised as the daughter of a president, we are not sure if she could empathize with ordinary people,but we are also curious if she will rule as her father did if she becomes president, or if she will have her own style.

 

2.      Moon Jae-in, Chairman, No Mu-hyeon Foundation

Moon Jae-in is emerging as a popular opposition candidate. His biggest asset is his affiliation with former president No Mu-hyeon. We were surprised when he was elected as a National Assemblyman, defeating Son Soo-joh in Saenuri in Busan. Another advantage of his is his clean image.

-    Associated with former president No Mu-hyeon

Making a stand with former president No Mu-hyeon is a dangerous strategy because many people were disappointed with the former president’s administration skills. If he keeps using his association with former president No Mu-hyeon to gain votes and fails to show his own vision, he may encounter major difficulties.

-    Clean image

He initially had a clean image,but it didn’t last long. Unauthorized buildings and his double standards about illegal investigations made his clean image fade away.

-    Victory in Busan, defeat in Nakdong River Belt

He gained major success in Busan, which was dominated by Saenuri for many years,but he didn’t make any difference in Nakdong River Belt. This can prove to be his weakness.

 

3.      Ahn Cheol-soo, Chairman, Graduate School of Convergence Science and Technology, Seoul National University

Ahn Cheol-soo has earned much support from the younger generation,but there are concerns about entrusting the presidency to a candidate with absolutely no political experience,and there is an opinion that the younger generation’s support for him just stems from their opposition to established politics. People wondered at the start if he would be running for president or would just throw his support behind a candidate, but he eventually chose to run for president.

-    Huge support from the younger generation

As shown in the Cheongchun Concert, he understands and sympathizes with the younger generation and the pain that they are feeling. His clear distinction from most of the other presidential candidates made the younger generation throw their support behind him.

-    Distrust

It is one thing to be distinct and another to have the ability to do the job well. As many people still give priority to political experience, we have to keep an eye on him to find out if he can become a good president after all.

 

U.S. presidential election

Another country that will be holding its presidential election this year is the United States of America. The American electoral system is very different from ours. Let’s find out the difference.

The U.S. presidential election can be divided into the nomination and election phases. First, the voters elect the delegates who will attend the party’s convention. The delegates then nominate the presidential candidates in the convention, andthe delegates elect the “electoral college”from among the voters.The members of the electoral college elect the president, after which the electoral college gathers the votes and declares the president-elect.

 

1)      Electing the electoral college

Every voter in each state elects the members of this college: 100 senators, 435 representatives, and 3 voters from the District of Columbia,for a total of 538 members.

Each party gives a slate and pledges to support its presidential and vice-presidential candidates.The voters then choose a candidate from the slate on the first Monday and Tuesday of November. Based on the results of the voting, in a winner-takes-all system, the party that gets the most votes takes the electoral college in the state.

Upon the completion of the voting of the electoral college, the presidential election results are confirmed, and the candidate who gets majority of the electoral votes and who secures at least 270 votes will be declared the president-elect.

 

2)      Presidential election by the electoral college

Each electoral college that won the state votes of their party candidate on the Monday after the second Wednesday of December,and the results, are taken straight to the vice president.

 

3)      Vote count and declaration of president-elect

The president of the Senate Election Committee announces the results in a joint session of Congress on January 6 of the following year, and the candidates who got the majority of the electoral votes or who got more than 279 votes shall be declared the president and vice president, respectively.

 

 

Now, let’s find out who the prime candidates are for the 2012 U.S. presidential election.

 

1.      Mitt Romney

Mitt Romney was born in Massachusetts in 1947 and graduated from Harvard Graduate School. His father is George Romney, a former Michigan governor and the Republican presidential nominee in 1968. He was able to put together a huge estate when he served as the chief executive officer of an investment firm. He ran for United States senator from the state of Massachusetts in 1994 and then went on to become the state’s governor. With regard to political issues like gay marriage, tax cuts, and abortion, he has a unique stand that is distinct from those of the other candidates. He has enough funding and a strong political image as a successful corporate executive. He has gained the votes needed to become the Republican presidential candidate in the 2012 U.S. presidential election.

 

2.      Barack Obama

Barack Obama made his presence felt when he became a senator. He received enthusiastic support from the Americans and was even called “Black JFK.” He was confirmed as the official Democratic candidate over Hillary Clinton in 2008, and on January 20, 2009, he formally took office as the 44^th president of the United States. Since taking office, President Obama presented the ideal of a world without nuclear weapons and worked really hard for nuclear disarmament. He has also been pursuing the resumption of the stalled Middle East peace process and has been actively participating in the efforts to come up with a fitting response to global climate change.

Obama was also awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, marking the third time that an incumbent president won the coveted prize since President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906 and Woodrow Wilson in 1919.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3.      Hillary Clinton

Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton is a female U.S. politician and the incumbent U.S. Secretary of State. The wife of former president Bill Clinton, she got much public attention due to her activities during her husband’s presidency. She was elected senator in 2000 and was appointed Secretary of State in 2009. She was the most powerful prospective Democratic presidential candidate in 2008 but was eventually defeated by Obama in the Democratic presidential nomination. She was appointed Secretary of State right after Obama’s election and was officially inaugurated on January 21, 2009.

 

China’s election style

Do the Soongsilians know about the Chinese election? China has a very different, unique election style. Today, China has 1.5 billion officially registered voters and a vast land area. The Constitution of China evinces “China-oriented MarxistLeninism, Mao Zedong thought, people’s democratic dictatorship, and a socialist perspective under the leadership of the Communist Party.” In short, China has only one powerful political party, and the entire power is held by the Communist Party.

The Central Committee, which belongs to the Communist Party of China, holds a National People’s Conference every five years to decide who is going to represent the country, the Chinese army, and the Communist Party. President Hu Jintao is currently in charge of the army and of the Communist Party.

 

China also has democratic-styleelections. Some local governments are holding democratic elections for local governors, and this election method is gradually spreading. When the first democratic election was held in the 1980s, some confusion arose:Who are going to be the candidates?Won’t the election results be distorted?Will the number of candidates from parties other than the Communist Party be limited? Unfortunately, the rigged-election style is still pervasive because the Communist Party dominates most of the local governments, the army, and even the central government. The recently revised election laws, however,are helping improve the system. Above all, anyone, even those who do not belong to the Communist Party, can join the elections as a candidate. This enables fair competition among the candidates. Before the election laws were revised, all the ballot count watchers were members of the Communist Party, but now, any person,even those who are not members of the Communist Party, can be a ballot count watcher. Thanks to these changes, 600 million Chinese citizens vote for their local governors every three years in about a million towns. Thanks to the people’s aspiration for democracy and desire for political participation, the Chinese society is gradually marching towards a democratic, citizen-oriented society.

As we have seen, although each country has a different election style, elections are very important events because through them, people choose the ones who will lead them in the future. Elections are the most powerful tools of the citizens in a democratic country. We can affirm or punish our congressmen and president through the elections, and as these men are aware of the citizens’ power to remove them from or reelect them into office,many of them strive to carry out their functions honestly. South Korea’s 19^thcongressional election is already over, but we will still have a presidential election in December. Let’s show our power and abilities as citizens by electing an honest and competent candidate for president on December 19, 2012.