On June 3, the National Election Commission (NEC) issued a public apology regarding a ballot shortage that occurred at several polling places in Seoul during the 9th nationwide local elections.
Heo Cheol-hoon, the Secretary General of the NEC, announced the apology and held a briefing at the commission's headquarters in Gwacheon at 9 PM.
The ballot shortage primarily affected polling places in the Songpa district. According to Yonhap News, starting around 1 PM, voters at some locations, including the No. 6 polling station in Jamsil 2-dong, faced delays due to a lack of ballots.
In response, Shin Dong-wook, chairman of the People Power Party's Election Integrity Committee, visited the NEC to demand explanations regarding the extent and causes of the ballot shortage.
During a meeting with Shin, Heo confirmed that as of 6:30 PM, ballot shortages had been identified at 12 polling places across four districts in Songpa, one polling place in Gangnam, and one in Gwangjin, totaling six districts and 12 polling stations.
Heo expressed, "I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and concern caused to the public due to the ballot shortage."
The NEC reported that additional ballots were urgently dispatched to the affected polling places and ensured that voters who had not completed their ballots by the 6 PM deadline were still able to cast their votes.
The commission plans to further investigate the circumstances and response measures related to the incident.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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