Election Commission Dismisses All 261 Petitions Over June 3 Local Election Ballot Shortages

About two months after the June 3 local election, the National Election Commission (NEC) has dismissed or rejected all 261 election petitions filed regarding the ballot paper shortage incident.

Regarding the petitions demanding the nullification of the Seoul mayoral election filed by voters and political parties including the People Power Party, the NEC stated, "While there were violations of regulations concerning the ballot shortages and suspended voting in some polling districts, they cannot be seen as having affected the final outcome."

This follows the same logic as the contents of a document titled "reference materials" that the NEC previously sent to regional election commissions prior to the petition review.

Previously, members of the Seoul Election Commission mass-resigned, claiming that the document amounted to a "dismissal guideline" and that it "compromised the fairness of the review."

Controversy has erupted over procedural legitimacy ahead of the substantive legitimacy of the results, and the People Power Party immediately announced its refusal to accept the petition results and plans to file an election nullification lawsuit with the court.

Meanwhile, the National Assembly’s special committee on the parliamentary investigation into the June 3 local election ballot shortage incident, formed to uncover the truth and draw up reform measures, is deadlocked.

Although the committee's operating period was extended, it remains at a standstill after clashing over the issue of recounting votes at the Olympic Park polling station.

The Democratic Party argues that the vote recount should be swiftly carried out on August 18 as previously tentatively agreed, whereas the People Power Party counters that the recount should be linked to the special counsel investigation, given that a special counsel targeting the NEC is scheduled to be launched.

At this point, it remains uncertain whether even the agreement to hold a plenary session on August 28 to adopt the special committee's final report will be honored.

As disputes surrounding the vote recount repeat, discussions on structural reforms for the NEC remain stalled.

The Democratic Party has previously announced its own reform proposal involving a one-point constitutional amendment to change the NEC's name and the method for appointing its commissioners, while also enabling audits of the NEC by the Board of Audit and Inspection.

Former National Election Commission Chairperson Noh Tae-ak and Acting Chairperson Wee Chul-hwan also expressed agreement during a previous plenary session of the special parliamentary investigation committee, stating that "constitutional amendment should be pursued if necessary."

While the People Power Party opposes the methodology, arguing that constitutional reform discussions could become a political black hole, it agrees on the necessity of institutional improvements such as strengthening audits of the NEC and making the Chairperson of the NEC a standing position.

However, as the special committee treads water amid the vote recount debate, it remains unknown whether bills containing NEC institutional improvements can pass through bipartisan agreement.

Since the June 3 local election, about 23 bills to amend the National Election Commission Act have been proposed in the National Assembly.

Reform bills regarding the NEC have been steadily introduced since the 17th National Assembly in 2004, but they have repeatedly been discarded due to the expiration of parliamentary terms.

When the "basket ballot" controversy erupted during the 2022 presidential election, reform bills were proposed one after another but failed to clear the parliamentary hurdle, leading to criticisms that the National Assembly exacerbated the situation by missing the window for institutional reform.

Meanwhile, with six candidates recommended for the special counsel to investigate the ballot paper shortage incident, the list is scheduled to be narrowed down to the final two tomorrow.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.