Regionalism and Party System Change at the Sub-national Level: The 2016 Korean National Assembly Election

Abstract

This paper analyzes regionalism in the 20th Korean National Assembly (NA) election in 2016 from a sub-national perspective. It thoroughly analyzes regionalism at both the party system level and individual level with a focus on the latter. At the party system level, overall electoral volatility and party competitiveness increased in the district of the Cholla (Southwestern) region in the 20th NA election, which resembled the 17th election in 2004. However, bloc volatility makes it difficult to confirm this assertion. Moreover, regional representation as a measure of regionalism turned out to be still a crucial factor determining individual vote shifts. More voters in the Cholla region supported the Peoples Party over the Minjoo Party as their regional representatives. The main findings of this study have significant implications for Korean electoral politics in identifying the key motivation of Cholla voters in supporting Democrat-affiliated parties, as democratization has evolved alongside broader changes in the political environment.