On October 7, lawmakers from both parties criticized the National Election Commission (NEC) during a parliamentary audit for its handling of the ballot shortage that occurred during the June 3 local elections and its subsequent response.
Yang Boo-nam, a member of the Democratic Party, stated, "The standards for printing ballots are a matter of NEC's decision according to legal interpretation," adding that the NEC hastily amended its regulations on October 2.
He continued, "This regulation previously allowed the Secretary-General to finalize the printing quantity and report it to the local election commissions after their decisions. This is not a decision. It is a case of 'closing one's eyes and pretending not to see' after making promises to the public."
Park Sang-woong, a member of the People Power Party, also remarked, "The chaos surrounding the NEC's operations during the June 3 local elections has turned South Korea's democracy into a laughingstock worldwide," noting that many young people are still demanding accountability at Olympic Park. He criticized the NEC for merely stating it would 'rebuild itself' without taking meaningful action.
The NEC's response to the recount following the election was also questioned. Yoon Geon-young, a Democratic Party member, pointed out, "It has been 124 days since Olympic Park became a lawless zone. What has the NEC been doing all this time?"
He raised concerns about the NEC not directly requesting the special prosecutor's office to address the recount at Olympic Park, asking, "Why haven’t they made such a request? The responsibility lies solely with the NEC, and after over 100 days of losses amounting to hundreds of millions, shouldn’t the NEC be suggesting a course of action?"
Yoon further questioned, "Why have they allowed the situation to persist for 124 days, turning the South Korean police into a playground for some far-right groups who refer to them as Chinese public security?"
Jin Jong-o, a member of the People Power Party, focused on the NEC's inadequate management of false deepfake videos. According to the Public Election Act, no one is allowed to produce or post images or videos created using artificial intelligence for election campaigning within 90 days of the election.
Jin stated, "The NEC's role is to identify and remove fake videos and false information. During this year's local elections, we requested the removal of 1,733 illegal posts, but one in three was not deleted. I hope the NEC will be more proactive in its official announcements and responsibilities."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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