[26.06.11] 1,104 Votes Omitted in Jeonbuk Election, Election Commission Raided

1,104 Votes Omitted in Jeonbuk Superintendent Election as Ballot Shortage Controversy Deepens Scrutiny of Election Commission

📍Vote-counting input errors in Jeonju led to the omission of 1,104 ballots, while a joint police-prosecution task force launched raids on the National Election Commission and regional offices.

South Korea's National Election Commission (NEC), already facing criticism over widespread ballot shortages during the June 3 local elections, has come under renewed scrutiny after it was revealed that 1,104 votes in the Jeonbuk Superintendent of Education election were omitted from the final tally.

The incident, which involved ballot box labeling mistakes and vote-counting input errors, has raised broader questions about the reliability of the country's election management system. Meanwhile, a joint investigation team composed of police and prosecutors has launched a full-scale probe into the ballot shortage controversy, intensifying pressure on election authorities.

🔹1,104 Votes Omitted During Vote Counting in Jeonbuk Superintendent Election

Amid controversy surrounding the nationwide ballot shortage during the June 3 local elections, it was belatedly confirmed that 1,104 votes were omitted from the final tally during the vote-counting process for the Jeonbuk Superintendent of Education election.

According to the Jeonbuk Election Commission, an error occurred during the counting process for the Jeonbuk superintendent election held on June 3, in which the results from Polling Station No. 1 in Junghwasan 1-dong, Wansan District, Jeonju, were excluded from the computerized tally, while the results from Polling Station No. 3 were reflected twice.

The problem began with a simple administrative error during the ballot box labeling process. A polling official mistakenly marked the ballot box from Polling Station No. 3 in Junghwasan 1-dong as "Polling Station No. 1," and the ballot box was transported to the counting center without correction.

Later, after the counting for the actual Polling Station No. 1 had already been completed, another ballot box labeled "Polling Station No. 1" was brought into the counting venue. The election commission reportedly proceeded with the count after recognizing it as the actual Polling Station No. 1 ballot box without conducting any additional verification procedures.

As a result, the 1,104 votes cast at the actual Polling Station No. 1 were omitted from the final tally, while the 994 votes from Polling Station No. 3 were reflected twice as the results of both Polling Station No. 1 and Polling Station No. 3.

🔹From Data Entry to Post-Verification... Errors Missed Repeatedly

The greater issue is that this incident is difficult to explain as a single on-site mistake.

The error that occurred during the ballot box labeling stage was not detected during the verification procedures at the counting venue. Subsequently, no irregularities were identified during the process of entering the counting results into the computerized system, and the error was not corrected during the post-verification procedures that should have taken place before the final tally.

In effect, the multilayered verification system operated by the election commission failed to function properly at each stage.

The election commission belatedly discovered, after all vote counting had been completed, that the results from Polling Station No. 3 had not been entered into the computerized system. As a result, it entered the vote count from Polling Station No. 3—which had already been mistakenly reflected as the result of Polling Station No. 1—once again as the official result of Polling Station No. 3.

Meanwhile, it was reported that correcting the actual counting results from Polling Station No. 1 through the computerized system was difficult because the vote-counting procedures had already concluded.

An election commission official stated, "We plan to decide, through discussions, how to correct and announce results that have already been made public to voters," adding, "We are reviewing measures to reflect the corrected vote totals in the official tally through a meeting."

🔹No Impact on Election Outcome, but Concerns Remain Over Election Administration

It was confirmed that this vote-counting error was not significant enough to overturn the election result.

According to the election commission, the computerized vote totals for candidates Cheon Ho-seong and Lee Nam-ho in the Jeonbuk superintendent election were entered as 554 votes and 400 votes, respectively. However, the actual vote totals were 597 votes for Cheon and 462 votes for Lee. The vote gap between the two candidates consequently narrowed from 154 votes to 135 votes.

In addition, according to the National Election Commission's election statistics system, the final margin between the winning candidate and the runner-up reached 118,644 votes, indicating that the omitted 1,104 votes did not alter the election outcome.

The election commission described the matter as an input error caused by an administrative mistake, stating that "it is not at a level that would affect the election result."

🔹Ballot Shortages Reported at 91 Polling Stations Nationwide...Growing Controversy Over Election Mismanagement

As the vote-counting error came to light, renewed attention has also been directed toward the nationwide ballot shortage that occurred during the June 3 local elections.

According to figures compiled by the election commission, ballot shortages have so far been confirmed at 91 polling stations across the country. By region, Seoul recorded the highest number with 42 polling stations, followed by Gyeonggi with 23, Incheon with 11, Daegu with four, Busan with three, Ulsan, South Gyeongsang Province, and South Jeolla Province with two each, and North Chungcheong Province and North Jeolla Province with one each.

At these polling stations, ballot shortages resulted in actual voting interruptions or prolonged waiting times. The duration of voting suspensions ranged from a minimum of four minutes to a maximum of 105 minutes. In some polling stations in Seoul's Songpa District, the exact length of the interruption could not even be determined.

The scale of the ballot shortage also increased significantly compared with the initial announcement.

The election commission had originally stated that 4,726 ballots were lacking at 50 polling stations nationwide. However, documents later submitted to the National Assembly revised the figures to 7,194 ballots across 91 polling stations.

This represented an increase of 2,468 ballots from the initial announcement, expanding the scale of the shortage by approximately 1.5 times.

In particular, criticism emerged that voters' constitutional right to participate in elections may have been infringed upon, as multiple cases of delayed or suspended voting were reported on election day.

Following the nationwide ballot shortage and the subsequent revelation of vote-counting errors, calls have intensified for a comprehensive review of the election commission's election preparation procedures, on-site response capabilities, and post-election verification system.

🔹Joint Prosecutor-Police Investigation Team Conducts Simultaneous Raids on Election Commission Offices

Investigative authorities have also launched a full-scale compulsory investigation.

On June 11, the joint prosecutor-police investigation team established to determine the truth behind the June 3 local election ballot shortage carried out simultaneous search and seizure operations targeting the National Election Commission and regional election commission offices.

According to police, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Regional Investigation Unit conducted raids that morning on a total of seven locations, including the National Election Commission headquarters in Gwacheon, the Seoul Metropolitan Election Commission, and district election commission offices in Songpa, Seocho, Gangnam, Gwangjin, and Dongjak.

The searches were conducted in connection with allegations including violations of the Public Official Election Act, dereliction of duty, occupational embezzlement, and breach of trust.

More than 100 personnel, including officers from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Regional Investigation Unit, the National Office of Investigation, and digital forensic specialists from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, were deployed for the operation.

It was also reported that three prosecutors and more than ten investigators from the joint investigation team participated in some of the search and seizure activities.

Search warrants reportedly listed more than ten individuals as suspects, including former National Election Commission Chairperson Noh Tae-ak, former Secretary-General Heo Cheol-hoon, and regional election commission chairpersons and secretariat officials.

Investigators are said to have secured ballot printing plans, meeting records, budget-related documents, and computerized data associated with the local elections through the searches.

🔹Investigation Focuses on Ballot Printing Process and On-Site Response Measures

Police plan to examine whether ballot preparation and distribution procedures, on-site response systems, and reporting processes were carried out appropriately.

Particular attention will be paid to why the election commission reduced the actual volume of printed ballots to around 50 percent despite securing a budget equivalent to approximately 110 percent of the number of eligible voters, as well as whether appropriate measures were taken after the possibility of ballot shortages had been recognized.

Authorities also intend to investigate conditions at polling stations nationwide where voting was delayed or disrupted.

Police are continuing interviews with election officials, representatives of ballot printing companies, and voters who either were unable to cast their ballots or experienced lengthy waiting times.

A police official stated, "We are concentrating on securing evidence to determine the causes that led to the infringement of citizens' voting rights," adding, "We intend to closely verify the facts and take necessary measures."

Meanwhile, Acting National Election Commission Chairperson Wi Cheol-hwan said, "We once again sincerely apologize to the public for the infringement of voting rights," adding, "We fully recognize the seriousness of the fact that not even a single person's right to vote should be violated, and we will do our utmost in our follow-up response efforts."

One-line summary : The delayed discovery of 1,104 omitted votes in the Jeonbuk superintendent election, coupled with an expanding investigation into nationwide ballot shortages during the June 3 local elections, has reignited concerns over accountability and public trust in South Korea's election administration system.