Up to 'Taekwondodang' Emerges... Flood of Political Parties, Election Commission Expands Manual Processing

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Cheol-eung] Political parties are pouring in. In addition to the 41 registered parties, 27 preparatory committees for new parties have been formed. Eventually, even Taekwondo practitioners have established a preparatory committee for a party based on the spirit of Taekwondo. While there have been parties based on religion, a party centered on sports or martial artists is unprecedented.

Also, with the upcoming elections, political realignments are leading to active new party formations. It is expected that the ballot will feature the largest number of parties in history. The National Election Commission is preparing for a situation where ballot sorting machines cannot be used.

According to the Election Commission on the 17th, the 'Gukgi Taekwondo Party Preparatory Committee' recently registered. The founding statement explains the background, citing materialism and extreme selfishness as shaking the nation's survival, and stating that "Taekwondo practitioners must rise resolutely with a sense of mission to recreate national unity and new growth engines for the country."

Emphasizing Taekwondo values such as 'courtesy,' 'patience,' and 'self-control,' it declared that "with Taekwondo's spirit of 'Baekjeol Bulgul' (indomitable spirit), we will instill a heroic spirit in the hearts of the people so that no matter what hardships come, they will face them confidently without yielding."

Other preparatory committees include 'Haeknara Party,' 'Small Business Party,' 'Meet Small Business Operators Party,' 'Marriage Future Party,' 'Chungcheong Future Party,' and 'Pro-Park New Party,' among others.

The Election Commission's ballot sorting machines can handle up to 24 parties. Beyond that, manual processing must be intensified. If more than 40 parties participate in the election, even the counting machines will be difficult to use, requiring significantly more vote counting personnel.

The Busan City Election Commission held a mock vote counting demonstration on the 7th, assuming participation of 45 parties, and conducted the counting manually.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.