The present invention relates to an apparatus for driving a light emitting diode. The apparatus for driving the light emitting diode according to the present invention comprises a rectifier circuit for accessing an Alternating Current (AC) voltage source to rectify an AC voltage of the AC voltage source, a light emitting diode array connected to an output side of the rectifier circuit and including a plurality of light emitting diode array blocks, and a charging/discharging circuit configured to be charged by a voltage output from the rectifier circuit, wherein the apparatus for driving the light emitting diode comprises a discharging switch, a block switch circuit, and a controller. The apparatus for driving the light emitting diode according to the present invention can apply a voltage equal to or larger than a driving voltage to intervals around a phase of 180 degrees in which the light emitting diode cannot be driven since a size of the voltage applied by the AC voltage source is smaller than or equal to the driving voltage, by using the charging/discharging circuit and the switch.