North Korea s Kim Jong Un reappointed as president of state affairs

North Korea has reappointed Kim Jong Un as the president of state affairs, according to state media on Monday, March 23. His re-election as the leader of the State Affairs Commission, which is the highest policymaking and governing body in the country, was reported by the state news agency KCNA. Critics claim that elections in North Korea are set in advance and meant to create an illusion of democracy. KCNA reported, “The Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA) of the DPRK re-elected Comrade Kim Jong Un as President of the State Affairs of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea at the First Session, the first state affairs activity of its 15th term, on March 22.” The announcement stated that the decision to re-elect Kim to this top position showed “the unanimous will and desire of all the Korean people.” Kim is the third ruler from his family in the nuclear-capable nation, which was founded by his grandfather, Kim Il Sung, in 1948. He has been in power since his father passed away in 2011. Lee Ho‑ryung from the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses described the election as a “highly choreographed event with a pre-determined outcome.” She noted, “Throughout the third-generation rule, the North has staged such events to showcase a procedure in an attempt to achieve political legitimacy. But no one thinks any different outcome would emerge from it.”