Ruling Party Moves for Age 19 Voting Franchise

The New Millennium Democratic Party decided to present the revised bills of the government official election law, election malpractice prevention law, and the political party law to the National Assembly to lower the voting age from 21 to 19 and to assign 50 percent seats of Provincial And Metropolitan Congress persons to women.

NMDP`s move coincides with the recent government`s consideration for the re-adjustment of legal adult age from 20 to 19. It seems to create another controversies between the ruling and opposition parties because the influence of adjustment on the election is crucial.

NMDP also moves to adjust the portion of the female proportional representatives of the Provincial and Metropolitan Congresses from current 30 percent to 50 percent and to appoint one woman ever other man to increase the validity of the system.

Yong-Gwan Jung yongari@donga.com