From Bush to Biden: How North Korea sees US elections

The timing and manner in which North Korea’s state-controlled media covers US presidential election results have long served as key indicators of Pyongyang’s stance toward an incoming US president.

According to South Korea’s Unification Ministry, close attention should be paid to the timing, approach and intended audience of North Korea’s reporting on US election results. Furthermore, the timing of Pyongyang’s first official message to the incoming US administration could yield valuable insights into its US policy and strategic intentions.

North Korean state media’s approach to reporting US election outcomes has fluctuated widely: at times immediate, at others delayed by months; sometimes direct, at others indirect, avoiding even the mention of the incoming US president. The coverage is often tailored to the target audience, whether domestic, international or both, reflecting Pyongyang’s intended message for each.

In recent cases, North Korean state media reported the election victories of Donald Trump in 2016 and Joe Biden in 2020 indirectly, a departure from the more direct acknowledgment given to George W. Bush and Barack Obama from 2000 to 2012.

When Joe Biden declared victory over Trump on Nov. 7, 2020, North Korean state media remained silent for over three months -- the longest delay in reporting a US presidential election outcome since 2000.

The acknowledgment of Biden's victory was subtle, however.

On Jan. 23, 2021, North Korea's DPRK Today, catering to international audiences, reported, “The US Congress failed to declare Biden as president-elect that day and only confirmed him the next,” citing the South Korea-based pro-North Korea outlet Jaju Sibo on the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.

However, North Korean state media outlets targeting domestic audiences such as the Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea, and Korean Central Television remained tight-lipped on the news.

The first official message to the Biden administration was delivered on March 18, 2021, through a press statement by then-First Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui, released via the external-facing Korean Central News Agency.

Choe claimed that the Biden administration had attempted to reach out to North Korea since mid-February through various channels, including the New York channel.

“We have already made it clear that no contact or dialogue between the DPRK and the United States can occur unless the US withdraws its hostile policy toward the DPRK; therefore, we will continue to disregard such attempts by the US in the future,” Choe declared in the statement, referring to North Korea’s official name.

When Trump declared victory on Nov. 9, 2016, North Korean state media quickly reported the outcome, but refrained from mentioning Trump by name.

At the time, North Korea’s Rodong Sinmun reported on Nov. 10, stating in an article that the Obama administration "has placed an even greater burden on the incoming administration, which will now have to contend with a nuclear power."

Trump's name was first mentioned in North Korean media on Nov. 19 that year, in an article criticizing the congratulatory message to Trump sent by South Korea's then-President Park Geun-hye, and disparaging the South Korea-US alliance.

North Korean domestic media, including the Rodong Sinmun, reported Obama's victories in 2008 and 2012 four days after each election.

In November 2008, domestic radio and the Rodong Sinmun reported that Obama "defeated Republican candidate Senator McCain by a large margin," a statement widely seen as signaling North Korea's favorable view of Obama.

Similarly, in November 2012 domestically oriented media announced, "The election results show that the Democratic candidate, incumbent President Barack Hussein Obama, defeated Republican candidate Mitt Romney to be re-elected as president."

Later that month, the Rodong Sinmun notably published articles calling for an end to the "US hostile policy toward the DPRK" and emphasizing the "urgent priority to swiftly end the unstable armistice between the DPRK and the US and establish a permanent peace mechanism" -- an apparent olive branch extended toward Obama's second-term administration.

In 2000, North Korea’s internal-oriented state media reported Bush’s victory against Al Gore five days after the US Supreme Court halted Florida’s vote recount on Dec. 12, stating that Bush’s win was confirmed by the court "without resolving the issues surrounding the problematic ballots in Florida."

However, the Kim Jong-il regime’s growing hostility toward Bush, intensified by his labeling of North Korea as part of an "Axis of Evil" in his 2002 State of the Union address, was reflected in North Korean reports following his reelection.

In a Nov. 9, 2004 commentary published six days after the presidential election, the Rodong Sinmun refrained from naming Bush directly, referring to him as "the re-elected president" while criticizing South Korea's then-ruling conservative Grand National Party for hastily sending a delegation to "curry favor with the re-elected president."

Jung Kyo-jin, a researcher at Korea University’s North Korea and Unification Research Center, remarked, “With Trump’s victory in the US presidential election now confirmed, North Korea will likely report his win promptly" through domestic media, including the Rodong Sinmun, potentially "highlighting Kim Jong-un’s personal rapport with Trump."

Jung highlighted that North Korea’s recent unveiling of its uranium enrichment facility and the timing of an ICBM launch just before the election underscored the shortcomings of Biden's North Korea policy, moves seemingly aligned with Trump’s interests.

“There is no doubt that Trump’s win is a favorable outcome for Kim Jong-un,” Jung said.

In contrast, Jung observed that North Korea’s significant delay in reporting Biden’s election victory -- a departure from its usual prompt response -- likely reflects strategic hesitation and unease with the Biden administration. This reluctance, he suggested, stems from the Biden administration’s strong emphasis on the South Korea-US alliance, human rights issues, and Biden's public characterization of Kim Jong-un as a "thug."