South Korea's election commission admits ballot shortage was a 'painful mistake'

South Korea's election commission on Monday admitted that a shortage of ballots during local elections was a "painful mistake," despite the fact that there were still about 42,000 ballots left in Seoul's Songpa District.

Wei Zhe-hwan, acting chairman of the Central Election Management Committee, said that the ratio of ballots printed for the local elections on June 3rd was 50% for the official voting day, excluding the 23.3% advance voting rate in Songpa District. If advance voting is included, the overall ballot printing ratio was actually 73.3%, and the final voting rate in Songpa District was 65.8%.

"It was a painful mistake that we failed to properly distribute the ballots to the 146 polling stations in Songpa District," Wei Zhe-hwan said.

He explained that although the election commission lowered the minimum printing ratio for official voting day to 50%, it allows the 255 local election commissions nationwide to decide the actual printing ratio based on local conditions and characteristics.

Regarding why the minimum printing ratio was set at 50%, Wei Zhe-hwan pointed out that after the last election, the number of leftover ballots increased, posing difficulties in counting and storing millions of ballots, and raising concerns about loss or theft. "Especially when too many ballots are printed, the election commission has been constantly questioned by the public about election fraud."

Wei Zhe-hwan said, "We once again deeply apologize for the infringement of citizens' right to participate in politics. We are keenly aware that even the voting rights of a single person being violated is unacceptable, and we will continue to take follow-up measures."

The election commission also appealed to the protestors who have been blocking the entrance to the handball gymnasium at Olympic Park in Songpa District for a week to protest the ballot shortage, asking them to allow the transport of election-related items.

Kang Dong-wan, acting secretary-general of the Central Election Management Committee, said, "We implore the public for their assistance so that the election-related items stored at the Songpa District polling station can be smoothly transported to the election commission."

Kang Dong-wan emphasized that the returned election-related items will be properly stored and that they will honestly cooperate with the ongoing investigation and any future national investigation.

Kang Dong-wan also mentioned, "The handball gymnasium is a public cultural space that frequently hosts performances and sporting events, and it should be restored and fulfill its original function."