Election body grants W52.3b to 3 parties
The National Election Commission distributed a total of 52.38 billion won ($37 million) in election subsidies to three political parties fielding candidates for the June 3 presidential election.
According to the election watchdog on Wednesday, the liberal Democratic Party of Korea, which is running Lee Jae-myung as its presidential candidate, received over 26.5 billion won. The conservative People Power Party, fielding Kim Moon-soo, received 24.29 billion won, while the minor conservative New Reform Party, with Lee Jun-seok as its nominee, received 1.57 billion won.
The Democratic Labor Party and the Liberty Unification Party, which are fielding Kwon Young-guk and Koo Joo-wa, respectively, were ineligible for subsidies, having failed to meet requirements set under the Political Funds Act.
Under the law, the total subsidy amount is calculated by multiplying the number of eligible voters in the most recent general election by a per-voter rate. This year, the calculation is based on the 2024 general election and a rate of 1,183 won per voter.
Half of the total amount was equally distributed to the Democratic Party and the People Power Party — both of which qualify as negotiating blocs by holding 20 or more seats in the 300-member National Assembly.
Five percent is allocated to parties with five to 19 seats, and 2 percent to parties with fewer than five seats if they meet certain thresholds from recent elections.
The remaining funds are split evenly, with half distributed in proportion to each party's share of Assembly seats and the other half according to their vote share in the 2024 general election.
Of the 300 seats in the National Assembly, the Democratic Party holds 170, the People Power Party has 107, the Rebuilding Korea Party — which did not put forth a candidate — occupies 12 and the New Reform Party has three.
No subsidies were provided to parties not fielding a presidential candidate. Other such parties comprise the Progressive Party, which has three seats in the National Assembly, and the Basic Income Party and Social Democratic Party that each hold one seat. The three remaining lawmakers are independent.
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