Analysis of Public Safety and Security-Related Pledges in the 22nd National Assembly Election of South Korea

This study analyzes the public safety and security-related pledges made by the elected members of the 22nd National Assembly of South Korea. The pledges of 46 proportional representatives were analyzed using the policy platforms of six political parties and data from the National Election Commission. The pledges of 254 district-elected members were comprehensively reviewed by dividing them into four regions. The analysis was based on three criteria: importance, specificity, and feasibility. The results revealed that the proportion of public safety and security pledges among the major parties' overall pledges was relatively low. Among the parties, the Democratic Party of Korea and the People Power Party received relatively higher evaluations. In contrast, satellite parties and smaller parties were found to lack such pledges. In the district-level pledges, proposals related to the installation of CCTV, expansion of safe-return services, and safety for women and single-person households were common. However, pledges related to cybercrime and drug-related crime were noticeably insufficient. Disaster safety pledges mostly focused on the prevention and response to natural disasters such as floods, while pledges concerning labor safety were found to be lacking. Many pledges lacked specificity and feasibility, and 90 out of the 254 district representatives did not present any public safety or security-related pledges, indicating the need for improvement. It is hoped that these pledges will become realistic and actionable policies that contribute to enhancing public safety.