Joint Investigation Team Raids 12 Officials from Seoul and Songpa Election Commissions over Ballot Paper Shortage Incident

Analysis of Committee for Fact-Finding Review Materials

The joint police and prosecution investigation team (hereafter, the joint investigation team) tasked with uncovering the truth behind the "ballot paper shortage incident" during the June 3 local elections launched a forcible investigation on June 24 targeting officials from the Seoul Metropolitan Election Commission and Songpa District Election Commission.

Central Election Commission Gwacheon Office. Photo by Yonhap News

The joint investigation team announced on this day, "In order to meticulously reconstruct the situation regarding the shortage of ballot papers on election day, we have conducted a search and seizure of three officials from the Seoul Metropolitan Election Commission and nine officials from the Songpa District Election Commission."

The investigation team is currently looking into suspicions that the Election Commission hastily decided to reduce the number of printed ballot papers and failed to respond properly on the day of the election.

It has also been reported that, during the recent questioning of officials dispatched to polling stations and other related personnel, the team obtained statements indicating that the Election Commission's response to the ballot paper shortage was inadequate at the time of the incident.

The joint investigation team is additionally examining suspicions that arose after election day, including allegations of ballot paper storage boxes being discarded or lost, as well as suspicions of overseas business trips undertaken by Election Commission officials for non-official purposes.

The investigation team also received and is analyzing materials related to the activities and reviews of the "Committee for Fact-Finding on the Ballot Paper Shortage Incident" as of the previous day. Once the investigation of working-level officials and the analysis of seized materials are completed, summons for further questioning of Election Commission staff are expected to follow.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.