Cheon Ha-ram, the leader of the Reform Party, stated at a press conference on June 8 that the party's leadership received a briefing from the Election Commission's deputy secretary regarding the ballot shortage.
According to the Election Commission, 50 polling stations faced actual ballot shortages, with 22 of those requiring voters to wait before casting their ballots as of June 5.
In response to concerns about ballot shortages, the Election Commission sent additional ballots to 67 polling stations, but 17 of those did not experience shortages, leaving 50 stations with a total deficit of 4,726 ballots.
Data from the office of Kim Min-jeon, a member of the ruling People Power Party, indicated that 17 polling stations, all located in Seoul, were short by more than 100 ballots. Notably, the 7th polling station in Jamsil 4-dong, Songpa District, had the highest shortage at 436 ballots.
Issues with the Election Commission's response and procedural delays were also highlighted. The ballot shortage was reported at 11:40 a.m. on election day, but immediate communication did not occur. The Election Commission became aware of the situation at 4:25 p.m. after receiving a call from a voter at the 3rd polling station in Garak 2-dong, Songpa District.
Furthermore, the decision to extend the closing time for affected polling stations until 10 p.m. was made solely by the chair of the Seoul Election Commission, rather than through a formal resolution by the National Election Commission. No subsequent resolutions from either the Seoul or National Election Commissions were reported.
In response, Cheon criticized the situation, stating, "There could be legal implications and issues of overreach."
The Reform Party is demanding a "selective re-election" in certain electoral districts affected by the ballot shortages and plans to file complaints regarding the invalidation of some elections due to the ballot shortages.
Cheon noted that the Election Commission indicated that complaints and lawsuits could be filed in cases where there are objections to the validity of the election, suggesting that the ballot shortage situation qualifies for such actions.
Meanwhile, Noh Tae-ak, the chair of the National Election Commission, issued a public apology regarding the ballot shortage on June 5 and expressed his intention to resign. Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae subsequently notified the National Election Commission of Noh's removal from his position.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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