Rival Parties Agree to 45-Day Parliamentary Probe into Election Commission; Plan to Be Processed on the 18th

A parliamentary investigation will be conducted for 45 days regarding the ballot shortage incident that occurred during the June 3 local elections.
To this end, the ruling and opposition parties have agreed to form a special investigation committee with an equal number of members from both sides, with the People Power Party chairing the committee.
Democratic Party Senior Deputy Floor Leader Cheon Jun-ho and People Power Party Senior Deputy Floor Leader-designate Kim Seung-soo agreed today (June 16) to process the parliamentary investigation plan, which includes these details, at the plenary session on the 18th.
After meeting with Kim at the office of the National Assembly Steering Committee chairman this afternoon, Senior Deputy Floor Leader Cheon stated, "We agreed to proceed with the parliamentary investigation to swiftly uncover the truth behind the infringement of citizens' voting rights caused by the ballot shortage and to establish an institutional foundation for a major reform of the National Election Commission."
The official title of the investigation is "Parliamentary Investigation into the Truth of Infringement of Voting Rights, Such as the Ballot Shortage Incident, and for Election Management," and the target agencies include the National Election Commission and local election commissions at each level.
The special committee will consist of 9 members from the Democratic Party, 7 from the People Power Party, and 2 from minor negotiation groups, with an initial investigation period of 45 days, which can be extended if necessary.
Senior Deputy Floor Leader Kim remarked, "Since this is a parliamentary investigation into a matter of public concern where there is no significant disagreement between the ruling and opposition parties, we decided on an equal number of members. We initially set the investigation period at 45 days to proceed as quickly as possible," adding, "We have agreed to extend it if further investigation is required."
He further emphasized, "Regarding the summoning of witnesses, the ruling and opposition parties have agreed to actively cooperate in adopting witnesses, including the Minister of the Interior and Safety, officials under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and officials from the cities, counties, and districts where the ballot shortage occurred," adding, "We have reached a consensus to allow for a thorough investigation of relevant agencies without any restrictions."
Meanwhile, the ruling and opposition parties also discussed the issue of forming the standing committees today but reaffirmed their differences in position.
Senior Deputy Floor Leader Cheon stated, "We believe the Democratic Party should chair the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, and we maintain the position that we should also lead the economic standing committees to take responsibility for state affairs," adding, "We will do our best to ensure the formation of the committees is completed by the plenary session on the 18th."
Senior Deputy Floor Leader Kim also said, "Considering the precedent where the majority party held the speakership and the opposition party held the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, we have strongly expressed our view that the opposition party should lead the Legislation and Judiciary Committee," adding, "Wouldn't it be more helpful to the public if the opposition party also chairs the economy-related standing committees to ensure checks and balances for the passage of bills?"
(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.