The president of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea () was the head of state of

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

from 1972 to 1998. The position was only occupied by

Kim Il-sung Kim Il-sung (; , ; born Kim Song-ju, ; 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was a North Korean politician and the founder of North Korea, which he ruled from the country's establishment in 1948 until his death in 1994. He held the posts of ...

from 1972 until his death in 1994. Aside from being president, Kim was also the

General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea The general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (Korean: 조선로동당 총비서) is the head of the Workers' Party of Korea, the ruling party in North Korea, and considered as the supreme leader of North Korea. The general secretary i ...

Chairman of the National Defence Commission The President of the State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea () is the head of state of North Korea.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Article 100 The president chairs the State Af ...

(until 1993) and

Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army The Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of Democratic People's Republic of Korea (Korean: 조선민주주의인민공화국무력 최고사령관) is the commander-in-chief of the Korean People's Army, the military of North Korea. The office ...

(until 1991). Following Kim's death in 1994, the position remained vacant until 1998. A constitutional amendment in 1998 named Kim Il-sung as the

eternal president The Eternal leaders of North Korea, officially the Eternal leaders of ''Juche'' Korea, refers to the practice of granting posthumous titles to deceased leaders of North Korea. The official title was established by a line in the preamble to the ...

and abolished the position.

Election

The 1972 Constitution stated that the president was elected by the

Supreme People's Assembly The Supreme People's Assembly (SPA; ) is the unicameral legislature of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), commonly known as North Korea. It consists of one deputy from each of the DPRK's 687 constituencies, elected to five-year ...

for a term of four years.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 90 A constitutional amendment in 1992 increased the president's term to five years which coincides with the term of the Supreme People's Assembly.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1992), Article 106 The constitution did not set a limit on how many times the president may be re-elected, nor did it define a line of succession, or even who would be

acting president An acting president is a person who temporarily fills the role of a country's president when the incumbent president is unavailable (such as by illness or a vacation) or when the post is vacant (such as for death, injury, resignation, dismissal ...

if the President is unavailable or the office of President is vacant.

Powers

The 1972 Constitution stated that the president was the head of state who represents the state's power.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 89 The president was the head of the Central People's Committee which was primarily responsible for setting North Korea's domestic policies.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 101Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 103 In necessary cases, the president could also have guided the meetings of the Administration Council.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 92 The president had the power to control the country's armed forces as the supreme commander of the armed forces and the chairman of the National Defense Commission.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 93 The president had the power to nominate the Vice President or Vice Presidents, the secretary general and members of the Central People's Committee and the

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

, who were then to be elected by the Supreme People's Assembly.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 76 The president promulgated the ordinances of the Supreme People's Assembly, the decrees of the Central People's Committee and the decisions of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 94 The president was also given the power to introduce agenda items in the sessions of the Supreme People's Assembly and to issue orders.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 80 The president had the power to ratify or nullify international treaties.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 96 The president was also tasked with receiving letters of credentials or recall from foreign ambassadors.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 97 The president had the power to exercise the power of special pardon.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1972), Article 95 The 1992 amendment of the 1972 Constitution introduced changes to the powers of the president. The amendment no longer made it possible for the president to automatically become the chairman of the National Defense Commission, who was tasked with the control of the country's armed forces. The president's power to conclude international treaties was transferred to the Central People's Committee.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1992), Article 120 Instead, the president was tasked with promulgating ratified or nullified international treaties.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1992), Article 107 The president was given the additional power to appoint or recall the country's ambassadors and ministers to other countries, which was a power that previously belonged to the Central People's Committee.

List of position holders

References

{{Supreme People's Assembly 1972 establishments in North Korea 1998 disestablishments in North Korea Government of North Korea

Election

Powers

List of position holders

See also

References