The National Election Commission(NEC) held a meeting to set up countermeasures for fair and faultless management of the by-election which will take place on 24th April with attendance of senior officials of the NEC and City/Do Election Commissions at the conference room of the NEC in 13th March.

The direction of management and main countermeasures that NEC instructed at the meeting are as follows:

▣ Focus on guide and preventive activities based on the trust of the public and stern measure against major electoral crime

The NEC asked that it should focus on preliminary guide and preventive activities rather than post-measures under the keynote of ''''Preventive/inspect activities that earn the public trust''''. However, for the major electoral crimes such as bribery and libel/black propaganda, they will be strictly coped with intensively by Special Surveillance Team.

The NEC will progress field-oriented information and preventive activities based on Information Task Force by candidates and Fair Election Support Team.

In the meantime, the NEC will sternly handle the illegal activities of false absentee report from facilities where the disabled live, proxy voting by snatching the ballot paper and so on.

▣ Acquire the fairness and correctness of voting/ballot counting management and strengthen easy access to vote for the disabled

The NEC also demanded that the quality of election service shall be improved by expanding and promoting the keynote of ''''Voter centered election management'''' at this by-election.

In particular, the NEC ordered that the integrated electoral register used for the first in this by-election should be seamlessly managed with thorough preparation. Furthermore, active PR works shall be made for voters not to feel any inconvenience in newly adopted early voting system.

The NEC also stressed that:

▲ More than two voting observers shall be accompanied in the process of transporting ballot boxes to the counting place after closing the vote;

▲ The return envelope for the absentee vote shall be made not to seeing through the ballot paper in the envelope despite strong light; and

▲ The facility for the disabled people''''s convenient vote in the ballot place shall be checked with groups of the disabled.

In addition, In case of the region that the polling station is inevitably changed due to school classes, the NEC will inform the changed station by hanging a banner in front of or near the originally planned place for voters to easily find the changed polling station.

▣ Progress diversified PR activities to increase the turnout

The NEC had discussed the measure to enhance the voting rate of by-election and directed PR activities customized to the status of relevant City/Do Election Commissions.

Each Election Commission will ask for the cooperation to the related institution to arrange the commute time to guarantee voters cast a vote as well as have various PR activities to attract electors'''' participation in voting by running ''''Visiting PR team for voting participation'''' and ''''Kids voting experience class''''.

As of March 12, confirmed districts of by-elections are 3 members of National Assembly, 2 heads of Gu/Si/Gun, 3 members of province/metropolitan city council and 3 members of Gu/Si/Gun council, total 11 constituencies and 42 preliminary candidates registered.

You can check detailed Information on elections by visiting the website of the NEC.(http://www.nec.go.kr/engvote/)