North Korea Acknowledges Dissenting Votes in Recent Elections
Rare Mention of Opposition Raises Questions About Country's Democracy
Voters Drop Ballot into White Boxes for Yes and Black for No, but No Has Never Won
SEOUL, Nov 28 (Reuters) - North Korea on Tuesday made a rare mention of dissenting votes in recent elections. Elections in North Korea reportedly come with a fair bit of consequences too. North Koreans are voting to elect the country's rubber-stamp parliament, the Supreme People's Assembly.
The official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that in the elections held on Sunday, 99.98% of eligible voters cast their ballots. Of those, 99.93% voted for the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) candidates, while 0.07% voted against.
This is the first time that North Korea has acknowledged any dissenting votes in an election. In previous elections, the WPK has always been reported to have won 100% of the vote. The fact that some North Koreans are now willing to vote against the ruling party is a sign of growing discontent within the country.
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