The People Power Party (PPP) has decided to file election appeals with the National Election Commission targeting regions where ballot shortages occurred during the June 3 nationwide local elections, including Seoul, Gyeonggi, Incheon, Busan, Ulsan, and Jeonnam-Gwangju. If an election appeal is upheld, a re-election will be held within 30 days.
The PPP held an emergency Supreme Council meeting Tuesday and resolved to file election appeals targeting relevant polling stations in regions where ballot shortages occurred. The appeals cover six types of elections: metropolitan government heads, basic municipal heads, metropolitan council members, basic council members, metropolitan proportional representation members, and basic proportional representation members. National Assembly by-elections and education superintendent elections were excluded from the appeals.
Choi Bo-yoon, the PPP's chief spokesperson, explained, "Since the right to file an appeal lies with the party leader and the appeal period runs until the 17th, this was a matter that had to be decided urgently and the deadline could not be delayed, so we went through Supreme Council discussions without holding a general meeting of lawmakers." She added, "We prioritized the principle of electoral fairness without considering advantages or disadvantages. There was consensus among the Supreme Council members on that point."
The PPP plans to examine, through the election appeals, whether voters' right to political participation was infringed due to the ballot shortages. Jeong Jeom-sik, the PPP's floor leader, stressed, "The meaning of an election appeal is to request a review of whether the ballot shortage affected the election in question," adding, "It is incorrect to characterize it as a so-called 'demand for re-election.'"
If the National Election Commission accepts the PPP's election appeal, a re-election will be held within 30 days. If the appeal is rejected or dismissed, the PPP, as the appellant, can file an election lawsuit with the court within 10 days. Whether the ballot shortage had an impact significant enough to change the actual election results is expected to be the key issue in the commission's judgment.
Within the party, some criticize that the leader made an unreasonable move with the election appeals to avoid calls for resignation. One first-term lawmaker remarked, "Claiming even the Seoul mayoral re-election, which was won dramatically, is a gamble that stakes the party leader's position."
