The National Election Commission(NEC) has assessed that under existing laws, it would be impossible to hold a public vote on reform bills that seek to weaken the investigative powers of the prosecution.

The commission issued its assessment on Wednesday after President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol's transition team suggested it will pursue a referendum on the contested bills, which the rival ruling camp is planning to railroad through the Assembly before Yoon of the main opposition People Power Party takes office on May 10.

The commission said that holding such a referendum is not possible due to a Constitutional Court precedent regarding the nation’s referendum law rendering it impossible to draft a valid voter list.

The court ruled in July 2014 that Section 1 of Article 14 of the nation's Referendum Act, which limits the participation of overseas Koreans, is inconsistent with the Constitution. 

The section on Preparation of Pollbooks dictates that overseas Koreans can only be put on the voter list if they are in the resident registration system or have reported their place of residence in Korea at the time of the referendum's announcement. 

In the ruling, the court added that drafting a voter list would not be possible until improvements are made to the Referendum Act.

In October 2017, the NEC submitted a revision bill to guarantee overseas Koreans' voting rights and other improvements, but the bill has been gathering dust at the National Assembly.