South Korean election body defends ballot printing decisions amid shortage probe

South Korea's election commission defended its decision to print fewer ballots for the recent local elections, citing challenges in managing leftover votes and concerns about fueling fraud suspicions. The commission stated that printing an excessive number of ballots relative to voter turnout had led to accusations of election rigging in the past.

Wi Cheol-hwan, acting chairman of the National Election Commission (NEC), explained in a statement that the minimum ballot printing ratio was reduced from 60% to 50% of registered voters. This change aimed to alleviate difficulties in inspecting and storing millions of surplus ballots, which also posed risks of loss, theft, or hijacking. The NEC also noted that local election committees requested flexibility due to short printing periods and challenges in securing printing facilities.

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The minimum ballot printing ratio of 50% was decided because of difficulties in inspecting and storing excess ballots, and we were plagued by allegations of fraudulent elections when printing excessive ballots relative to voter turnout.

While the 50% threshold applied to ballots for the main election day, Wi clarified that when combined with the advance voting rate of 23.3%, the overall printing ratio reached 73.3%. He pointed to a specific ballot shortage in Songpa District as a critical error in distributing ballots to polling stations, not a result of insufficient printing. In Songpa, despite a 65.8% turnout, approximately 42,000 ballots remained, yet distribution failed.

An independent fact-finding committee and investigative agencies are probing the ballot shortage incident. Wi stated that he is providing current information based on his knowledge while awaiting the full investigation results, which are expected to shed more light on the matter.

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The failure to distribute ballots to each of the 146 polling stations in Songpa District was a painful mistake.