National Election Commission (NEC) Chairman Roh Tae-ak, Secretary General Heo Cheol-hun, and Seoul Election Commission Chairman Oh Min-seok resigned, taking responsibility for the ballot shortage. The NEC explained that it had reduced printing of election-day ballots to 50% of the voter count due to cost savings and disposal burdens following rising early voting turnout. However, criticism is mounting that complacent handling, which failed to properly account for variations in demand among polling stations and emergency transfer procedures, triggered an unprecedented violation of voting rights.
The NEC explained the background of the reduced printing on Wednesday, saying, "As early voting turnout has continued to increase in recent elections, there has been a tendency for excessive election-day ballots to remain." It added, "Since voters who cast early ballots are excluded from election-day voting, we judged that it was not necessary to print 100% of the voter count," and said, "We revised the guidelines and administrative manual to reflect internal research findings and the opinions of frontline committees."
The commission explained that in the case of Songpa District, ballots were printed based on 50% of the voter count, and at some polling stations 60%. Taking into account the early voting turnout of 23.3%, the commission maintains that the overall volume itself was not insufficient. However, it said that as variations arose in the number of election-day voters at each polling station, ballots ran short at some sites.
Yet following such reduced printing, ballot shortages occurred in this local election not only in Seoul but across the country. According to the NEC, additional ballots were sent to 35 polling stations in Seoul, eight in Busan, seven in Daegu, six in Incheon, three in Ulsan, and eight in South Gyeongsang Province. The polling stations that actually ran short of ballots numbered 50 in total, including 14 in Songpa District. The number of polling stations where voting was temporarily suspended and then resumed reached 22.
The commission apologized, saying, "It was inadequate that we failed to establish transfer procedures for when ballot shortages occurred." However, the controversy has not subsided despite the commission's explanation. It appears difficult to avoid criticism that a judgment prioritizing the handling of surplus ballots over guaranteeing voting rights amplified on-site confusion, and that the commission failed even to properly prepare a manual for emergency situations. In addition, according to a group chat between Songpa District and election commission officials disclosed by the Korean Government Employees' Union, inquiries about whether additional ballots would be distributed poured in starting at 2 p.m. on election day. Since about four hours remained until voting closed, there was ample opportunity to distribute additional ballots, but criticism has also emerged that the commission's delayed response worsened the situation.
In fact, evidence was also detected at some polling stations that ballots fell short of even 50% of the voter count. On the same day, a box of ballots presumed to have been sent to the polling station by the Songpa District Election Commission was found inside one polling station. The number of printed ballots written on the outside of the box was 1,900 in total. The voter count for that polling station is identified as 3,856. This means that ballots were initially prepared for only 49.3% of the voters.
The fallout from the ballot shortage is also spreading. The Metropolitan Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency will conduct questioning of an official from the Citizens' Livelihood Measures Committee, who filed a complaint accusing Chairman Roh and others of dereliction of duty and abuse of authority, on Thursday. As the responsibility debate over the commission grows, observations have emerged that a compulsory investigation is inevitable.
Meanwhile, the two ballot boxes from the No. 2 polling station in Jamsil 7-dong, Songpa District, Seoul, which had been blockaded for three days surrounded by protesters opposing the ballot shortage, were removed by police on the morning of the same day, and counting was completed. The counting of the ballot boxes from the No. 2 polling station in Jamsil 7-dong, which began at 10 a.m. at the Olympic Park Handball Stadium, ended around 3:20 p.m. As a result, the election of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon was also legally confirmed. Oh won 2,575,819 votes (49.22%), while Democratic Party candidate Jung Won-oh received 2,515,560 votes (48.07%). The proportional representation seats in the Seoul Metropolitan Council also reversed from an initial eight seats for the Democratic Party and seven for the People Power Party to eight for the People Power Party and seven for the Democratic Party.
Even after the ballot boxes were removed, protesters continued their demonstrations, moving to locations including the front of the NEC headquarters in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, and the Olympic Park Handball Stadium. Police were reported to have estimated the number of rally participants at about 250 on the same day. Some participants shouted slogans such as "Take responsibility for the rigged election." People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok and party lawmakers including Kim Eun-hye and Joo Jin-woo also joined the scene and demanded a meeting with the commission.
