Joint Investigation Team Raids Election Commission Amid Suspicions of Voter Turnout Manipulation in June 3 Local Elections

[Anchor]

The joint police-prosecution investigation headquarters has raided the National Election Commission, having found circumstances suggesting that an election official falsely entered the number of voters on the day of the June 3 local elections. The suspicion is that figures were arbitrarily altered to cover up an incorrect entry of the voter count. An investigation that began over a ballot paper shortage is now expanding into allegations of voter turnout manipulation.

Reporter Shin Yong-il has the details.

[Reporter]

The joint police-prosecution investigation headquarters conducted raids on the National Election Commission in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, and the Gyeonggi Provincial Election Commission.

The search warrants outlined charges of falsifying official electronic records and obstructing official duties. During the investigation into the ballot paper shortage, the joint headquarters captured circumstances indicating that a voter count had been falsely entered at a polling station in Gyeonggi Province on the day of the June 3 local elections.

An official at a regional election commission incorrectly entered hundreds of voters as thousands during the process of tallying hourly voter turnout. To conceal this, the official attempted to manipulate the turnout by arbitrarily distributing figures exceeding the actual number of voters to other polling stations.

It was also found that the necessary reporting and approval procedures from superiors, which are required when modifying incorrectly entered numbers, were bypassed.

The joint headquarters has secured messenger chat logs showing that working-level election commission staff conspired among themselves to fudge the numbers without reporting the erroneous voter count entry to their superiors.

The manipulated statistics reportedly returned to normal over time through subsequent corrections.

The joint headquarters has booked two individuals, including employees from the National Election Commission and the Gyeonggi Provincial Election Commission involved in the turnout manipulation. Once the analysis of the seized items is complete, they plan to summon the suspects to investigate the details of the manipulation.

Meanwhile, the joint headquarters also conducted raids on election commissions in Seoul's Songpa, Gangnam, and Seocho districts to secure additional evidence regarding the ballot paper shortage, which was the original focus of the investigation.

(Photo courtesy of Yonhap News)
(Video Reported by Lee Sang-hak, Kang Si-woo | Video Edited by Won Hyung-hee | Design by Kim Ye-ji)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.