Assembly likely to retain 300 seats

By Kim Hyo-jin  The number of seats for the National Assembly to be contested in next year's general election is likely to remain at 300. A controversy over the issue grew after the reform committee of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD) last month proposed raising the number of parliamentary seats from 300 to 369. NPAD Chairman Moon Jae-in said Tuesday during a general meeting that the party's Supreme Council has clarified its position on electoral reform. "We will support a new proportional representation system based on regional votes, without expanding the Assembly," he said. "There can be various opinions on the optimal number of legislators. But the public wouldn't accept an increase." The decision came amid stalled discussions on electoral reform between rival parties. Citing this as a way to mitigate regionalism and the two-party monopoly, the committee suggested that the ratio between elected seats to non-elected seats be two-to-one, which would raise the number of proportional representatives from 54 to 123. In response, Saenuri Party Chairman Rep. Kim Moo-sung made it clear that he opposes the idea of increasing the number of Assembly seats. He adopted a strong stance on the issue, saying, "Even if electoral seats increase, the entire number of parliamentary seats should be retained by decreasing the number elected through proportional representation." Since then, the Saenuri Party has adhered to its stance. With the proposal of expanding the Assembly now off the table, the rival parties are expected to make progress in discussions over electoral reform.