Independent Counsel Raids NEC Over Alleged Preferential Treatment in KRW 45.9B Early Voting Printer Project

The special counsel team investigating the National Election Commission (NEC) has conducted an additional raid on the central election body, having captured circumstances pointing to bidding irregularities in the early voting paper printer manufacturing project.

The special counsel team began raiding the NEC's election infrastructure division, as well as the offices and factory of Company A, a manufacturer of voting paper printers, around 9:00 a.m. today (Nov. 4).

The allegations specified in the warrant include occupational breach of trust.

A total of 32 personnel were deployed for the search and seizure, including two dispatched prosecutors and 10 digital forensic investigators.

The special counsel team explained that it captured circumstances where the central NEC provided preferential treatment to Company A, such as leaking the business plan prior to the bidding announcement for the 2024 model early voting paper printer manufacturing and consumable procurement project.

Investigations showed that even though Company A violated its contract by arbitrarily modifying the voting paper printers after the equipment performance evaluation so that they would only recognize exclusive inks produced by the company, the NEC condoned it.

Furthermore, the NEC changed its internal guidelines so that local election commissions nationwide would purchase consumables such as ink—which were supposed to be bought from small businesses or micro-enterprises—exclusively through private contracts with Company A.

The special counsel team believes that the central NEC created an exclusive supply structure allowing Company A to sell not only the voting paper printers but also consumables like ink throughout the 10-year service period.

Approximately 17,000 early voting paper printers from Company A have been supplied to local election commissions, with the manufacturing project cost alone reaching approximately KRW 32.1 billion.

This is the largest scale among projects commissioned by the central NEC over the past five years.

The total amount for consumables exclusively supplied by Company A to local election commissions from December 2023 to July of this year, including ink and maintenance boxes, stands at KRW 13.8 billion, bringing the entire project scale to KRW 45.9 billion.

The special counsel team launched a full-scale investigation based on investigative reference materials containing suspected bidding irregularities received from the Board of Audit and Inspection last month, and is focusing its investigative capabilities on uncovering the truth.

The special counsel team stated, "We will uncover whether NEC officials colluded with a specific company and provided undue preferential treatment during the manufacturing of early voting paper printers and the procurement of consumables," adding, "We will do our best to clarify the truth, including the scale of damage inflicted on the state, and determine accountability."

On November 2 and 3, the special counsel team also simultaneously raided 18 departments, including the office of the NEC chairperson, over allegations regarding the improper payment of fair election promotion activity funds to the chairperson and non-standing commissioners of the NEC.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.