The National Election Commission has dismissed all 261 appeals related to the June 3 local elections, either rejecting or dismissing them. While the commission acknowledged that some voting interruptions due to a shortage of ballots in areas like Seoul and Busan constituted violations of election regulations, it concluded that these issues did not significantly affect the election results.
On August 12, the commission reported that it rejected 112 of the appeals and dismissed 149, with none being upheld.
The appeal filed by the People Power Party regarding the Seoul mayoral election was also dismissed. The commission recognized that the shortage of ballots at certain polling stations violated relevant regulations but determined that this violation did not influence the election outcome.
For similar reasons, appeals concerning the mayoral elections in Busan and Incheon, as well as proportional representation elections for city councils in Seoul, Busan, and Incheon, were also dismissed. Appeals related to the Gyeonggi governor and proportional representation elections for the Gyeonggi Provincial Assembly, as well as the mayoral elections in Ulsan and the Chungbuk governor election, were likewise rejected.
All appeals filed by the Reform Party regarding proportional representation in the Seoul City Council and the mayoral elections in Busan, Daegu, and Incheon, as well as the Gyeonggi governor election, were also dismissed.
The commission stated that while there were violations of regulations due to voting interruptions in the Seoul, Busan, and Incheon mayoral elections and the Gyeonggi governor election, it did not find any violations in the elections for the integrated mayor of Gwangju, Ulsan mayor, and Chungbuk governor.
In light of the commission's decisions, the People Power Party plans to pursue legal action to contest the election results. Party leader Jang Dong-hyuk stated that if the appeals were dismissed, they would have to go to court, and floor leader Jeong Geum-sik indicated that they would consider filing a lawsuit.
The Reform Party is also expected to decide on whether to file a lawsuit after legal review.
According to the Public Official Election Act, if a party disagrees with the commission's decisions on the dismissal or rejection of appeals related to the elections for city and provincial governors and proportional representation members, they can file a lawsuit with the Supreme Court within 10 days of receiving the decision notice.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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