Sufficient Ballots in Seoul's Songpa District; Election Commission Calls Mismanagement a 'Serious Mistake'

(Central News Agency, Seoul, 11th, exclusive dispatch) South Korean authorities continue to investigate the ballot shortage incident during local elections. Acting Chairperson Wei Zhehuan of the National Election Commission stated on the 11th that although Seoul's Songpa District had approximately 42,000 remaining ballots overall, the failure to properly distribute them was a painful mistake.

The local elections held on the 3rd experienced ballot shortages, with Songpa District being the most severe. Fifteen polling stations ran out of ballots, and voting was temporarily suspended at 12 of them.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Acting Chairperson Wei Zhehuan explained that the ballot printing ratio for the official voting day was set at 50%, a figure calculated after deducting Songpa District's early voting rate of 23.3%. When early voting is included, the overall printing ratio was actually 73.3%, and the final voter turnout in Songpa District was 65.8%.

In a statement, Wei said, "The failure to properly distribute ballots to the 146 polling stations in Songpa District was a heartbreaking mistake." He explained that while the commission lowered the minimum ballot printing ratio for the official voting day to 50%, it allowed the 255 local election commissions nationwide to decide the actual printing ratio based on local conditions and characteristics.

Regarding why the minimum printing ratio was set at 50%, Wei pointed out that leftover ballots from the previous election had increased, making counting and storage difficult for millions of ballots, and raising concerns about loss or theft. "Especially when too many ballots are printed, the election commission has constantly faced allegations of election fraud from the outside," he said.

Wei stated, "I once again express my deep apologies for the damage to the people's right to vote. We are keenly aware that even the infringement of one person's right to vote is unacceptable, and we will continue to take follow-up measures."

The commission also appealed to protesters who have been blocking the entrance to the Olympic Park Handball Gymnasium in Songpa District for a week to protest the ballot shortage, asking them to allow the transportation of ballot counting materials. Acting Secretary General of the National Election Commission, Kang Dong-wan, said, "We earnestly ask for the public's cooperation so that the ballot counting materials stored at the Songpa District counting station can be smoothly transported to the commission."

Kang emphasized that the retrieved ballot counting materials would be properly stored and that the commission would honestly cooperate with the ongoing investigation and any future parliamentary investigations. Kang also mentioned, "The handball gymnasium is a cultural space for the people where performances and sports events are frequently held. It should be restored and allowed to function as it originally did." (Editor: Zhang Zhixuan) 1150611