South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Sunday called for a thorough investigation into a ballot shortage that disrupted recent local elections, involving prosecutors and police. In a post on X, Lee expressed deep regret as both a citizen and the president responsible for the government. Last week's local elections were marred by a ballot shortage that prevented some eligible voters from casting their ballots. The head of the National Election Commission (NEC), the independent body overseeing the vote, resigned following the incident. Thousands have since protested outside a ballot-counting site in Seoul, demanding a re-run.
Lee described the incident as difficult to comprehend and criticized the NEC's response and explanations as insufficient. He has asked parliament to conduct a fact-finding probe, establish measures to prevent a recurrence, and discuss reform plans for the commission. Jang Dong-hyeok, leader of the opposition conservative People Power Party, told a press conference on Sunday that he visited the protests and called for a joint audit with Lee's Democratic Party. Jang noted that ballot shortages were particularly severe in areas leaning conservative but stopped short of demanding a re-run, stating he would obey whatever the people command.
Election Results and Ballot Shortage Details
The Democratic Party swept major local races, but the opposition retained the Seoul mayoralty, with incumbent Oh Se-hoon winning another term. The NEC reported that 50 of 14,300 polling stations ran out of ballots, and voting was temporarily suspended at 22 stations due to supply delays. In Seoul, delays occurred at 12 locations in Songpa district, a conservative stronghold. At one Songpa polling station, an angry crowd blocked officials from moving ballot boxes for counting after voting ended.
