South Korean lawmakers launch probe into ballot paper shortages

A People Power Party lawmaker said a new parliamentary investigation will seek to establish the causes of ballot paper shortages and the election commission’s inadequate response. (EPA Images pic)

SEOUL: South Korea’s parliament on Thursday gave the green light for an investigation into ballot paper shortages that disrupted municipal elections this month and fuelled political tensions.

Dozens of polling stations experienced unprecedented ballot paper shortages on June 3 for the first nationwide vote since President Lee Jae Myung took office a year ago.

The controversy prompted the resignation of National Election Commission (NEC) chief Roh Tae-ak and sparked demonstrations by South Koreans demanding a re-election.

Protesters have blocked access to an Olympic gymnasium that served as a vote-counting centre ever since.

The new parliamentary investigation will seek to establish “the causes of the unprecedented ballot paper shortages and the election commission’s inadequate response”, said Yoon Sang-hyun, a lawmaker from the main opposition People Power Party (PPP).

It will aim “to clearly establish accountability”, Yoon — who heads the investigation committee — said during a live-streamed National Assembly plenary session ahead of Thursday’s vote.

The PPP, which suffered major election losses outside of Seoul, said Thursday it had filed appeals covering seven regions, including the capital, with the NEC.

Under the country’s election laws, the commission has 60 days to decide whether serious irregularities occurred.

If the appeals are upheld, fresh elections must be held within 30 days.

If rejected, the complainants will have 10 days to challenge the decision in court.

Police and prosecutors last week conducted a raid on the NEC as part of an investigation into the shortages, a spokesman of the special investigation team told AFP Thursday.

Investigators “seized electronic data from the commission’s servers and is now analysing the material obtained”, he said.

Analysts say the NEC, a constitutional body with limited external oversight, has long faced gaps in internal discipline and review mechanisms.

Former president Yoon — now jailed and on trial for insurrection — claimed after declaring martial law in 2024 that the NEC had ignored warnings about North Korean threats to voter data and failed to cooperate fully with intelligence agency inspections.

Yoon’s claims resonated with far-right YouTubers and supporters, who spread unverified election fraud theories online and questioned the commission’s credibility.