Eternal President of the Republic

The appellation Eternal President of the Republic (공화국의 영원한 주석, literally "Eternal Chairman of the Republic") was established by a line in the preface to the Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, as amended on September 5, 1998. It reads:

According to Ashley J. Tellis and Michael Wills, this amendment to the preamble is an indication of the unique North Korean characteristic of being a theocratic state based on a cult of personality revering Kim Il-sung. In addition, North Korea adopted a Juche calendar dating from 1912, the year of Kim Il-sung's birth.

Original position (President of North Korea) 1972–1994

The President of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) was established in the Constitution of North Korea, 1972. Until then, Kim Il-sung, the ruler of North Korea, used the posts Premier and General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea. In 1972 the Presidency was established and Kim Il-sung was elected to the post by the Supreme People's Assembly, the North Korean parliament, on 28 December 1972. Kim held the post until 1994 when he died, to this day without a formal succession. In 1998, the revised constitution abolished the presidency and established the honorific title of Eternal President of the Republic, which was given to Kim Il-sung.