Secretary General Heo Cheol-hoon of the National Election Commission bows while apologizing to the Korean public over a shortage of ballots at multiple polling stations for the local elections on June 3, 2026. (Yonhap)
Voting had to be paused at multiple polling stations in Seoul, Incheon and other parts of the capital area during Korea’s local elections on Wednesday afternoon because of a shortage of ballots. While most of the affected people were able to cast their votes after a delay, some apparently could not wait any longer and had to leave without voting.It’s hard to believe that something like this could have happened in modern-day Korea, a country that takes great pride in its advanced democratic system.In a representative democracy, voting is the fundamental way of implementing popular sovereignty. If even a single person cannot exercise that sovereignty because poor management results in a shortage of ballot papers, how can the public feel confident in the fairness of the election?Korea’s National Election Commission (NEC) shouldn’t even think about glossing over the incident as if it were just an isolated error. Along with fully addressing the reasons for an incident that provoked distrust in the fairness of our election management, the NEC also needs to sternly discipline those responsible.The commission’s story is that certain stations didn’t have enough ballot papers because turnout was higher than in previous years. For example, Seoul’s Songpa District prepared enough ballots for 50% of total voters, leading to shortages at 12 of the 146 polling stations in the district.That explanation is lacking. With early voting hitting historic levels, it was widely predicted that election day turnout would be much higher than usual.The NEC appears to have been too complacent about its preparations.In addition, the NEC said it had received reports about ballot shortages at a total of 14 polling stations (12 in Songpa District, 1 in Gangnam District and 1 in Gwangjin District), but the main opposition People Power Party claimed that ballots ran out at 17 stations. The NEC needs to nail down the basic facts and provide an explanation that will satisfy the public.That’s especially crucial at a time when conspiracy theories about electoral fraud are spreading in some sections of the conservative camp.Needless to say, the claims about election fraud have been proven groundless by forensic studies backed up by a Supreme Court ruling. But the NEC needs to take every precaution lest it provide more grist for the rumor mill.During the 2022 presidential election, the NEC was mired in controversy over its shoddy handling of ballots cast by people in quarantine because of COVID-19 exposure or infection. But that doesn’t hold a candle to the severity of this mistake.The NEC needs to get serious and prove that it’s fit for purpose.Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]
