The fallout from a shortage of ballot papers at some Seoul polling stations on the main voting day of the 9th nationwide local elections is intensifying. Voters who were unable to cast their ballots or waited for long periods, along with conservative-leaning supporters, blocked the removal of ballot boxes, and the standoff continued into the following day. Calls to hold the National Election Commission accountable show signs of spilling over into legal battles, including lawsuits to nullify the election. Critics say that the election, hailed as "the flower of democracy," has become a fuse igniting conspiracy theories of electoral fraud and social division because of poor management, rather than serving as an occasion for unity.
On the morning of the 4th, about 350 people, including residents, conservative-leaning supporters, and YouTubers, gathered in front of the No. 2 polling station of Jamsil 7-dong, set up at the senior center of Useong Apartment in Songpa-gu, Seoul. They blocked the removal of two ballot boxes while shouting "new election," "stop the vote count," and "nullify the election." The ballot boxes were reported to contain about 2,000 ballots. The number of related 112 emergency calls received by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency from the previous day until 5 a.m. that morning reached 135.
The situation began on the afternoon of the 3rd when ballot papers ran short at some polling stations in Songpa-gu, Gangnam-gu, and Gwangjin-gu in Seoul, leaving voters unable to vote or forced to wait for long periods. Those blocking the removal of the ballot boxes are taking issue with the fact that the election commission prepared ballot papers amounting to only about half the number of voters in Songpa-gu. They point out that, even taking the early voting turnout into account, preparing only about 50 percent of the main voting papers when the final turnout exceeded 61 percent was a clear failure in demand forecasting. The doubts among conservative-leaning supporters grew further, particularly as the confusion was concentrated in the Gangnam area, where Oh Se-hoon, the People Power Party candidate for Seoul mayor, showed strength.
Political circles spoke with one voice on holding the election commission accountable but clashed over how to respond. The People Power Party demanded a halt to the vote count and a new election, saying "the fairness of voting in Seoul has been broken," and signaled legal action, including a lawsuit to nullify the election. By contrast, the Democratic Party said the election commission must be held strictly accountable for its poor management, but dismissed the People Power Party's demands as "refusing to accept the election results."
The problem is that the situation is spreading beyond a simple administrative error into distrust of the entire electoral system. The election commission previously faced the so-called "basket voting" controversy during the 2022 presidential election, followed by a controversy over poor management of early voting stations during last year's snap presidential election. This time, an unprecedented shortage of main voting papers has dealt a critical blow to the fairness and credibility of election management.
Elections hinge on procedural trust that makes even losers accept the results. However, as a shortage of ballot papers disrupted the exercise of voting rights for some voters in an election to choose the head of the capital, Seoul, doubts are spreading over whether "my vote was properly reflected." Concerns are emerging that the election commission's poor management provided justification for hardline supporters' claims of electoral fraud, reignited sentiments of refusing to accept election results such as "Yoon Again," and turned the election into an occasion for distrust and division between camps rather than unity.
Legal battles are also beginning in earnest. The Citizens' Welfare Countermeasure Committee filed a complaint against National Election Commission Chairman Noh Tae-ak, Secretary General Heo Cheol-hun, and officials of the Seoul and Songpa-gu election commissions on charges of abuse of authority and dereliction of duty. The People Power Party also signaled legal action, including a lawsuit to nullify the election. However, legal circles place more weight on management flaws and negligence stemming from complacent demand forecasting rather than intentional election fraud or dereliction of duty. As for whether the election can be nullified, the key issue is expected to be whether the number of voters unable to vote exceeded the vote gap between the winner and the loser, thereby affecting the election outcome.
Experts believe the likelihood of the situation actually leading to a nullified election or a new election is low. This is because it must be proven that the management flaws had a significant impact on the election results. However, it remains uncertain whether the situation will subside even if the lawsuit to nullify the election is not accepted. Observers point out that if the election commission fails to transparently clarify responsibility for ballot paper calculation, on-site reporting, central response, and additional printing and transport procedures, this situation could go beyond the confusion at one local polling station and lead to distrust of the entire election management system.
