The National Election Commission said on Jun. 4 that the shortage of ballot papers at some polling stations on the 6·3 local election main voting day on the 3rd "does not correspond to grounds for halting the count or for a rerun of the election."
The National Election Commission stated accordingly in an official position released after holding an emergency committee meeting early that morning, presided over by Roh Tae-ak, chair of the National Election Commission.
The National Election Commission said, "The issue of ballot paper shortages that occurred at some polling stations on election day is not a reason for postponing the election or for a rerun under the Public Official Election Act." Accordingly, it is not possible to halt the ongoing ballot count, and the commission's position is that, to confirm the intent of voters at those polling stations, the ballot boxes must be transported to the counting centers as scheduled.
However, the National Election Commission apologized to voters who experienced confusion due to the ballot paper shortage. The commission said, "We deeply apologize for causing significant confusion and inconvenience in the exercise of suffrage due to a shortage of ballot papers at some polling stations," and added, "We keenly feel our heavy responsibility for having caused great disappointment and concern to voters who took precious time to come to the polls due to the commission's mistake."
The National Election Commission plans to begin a fact-finding probe as soon as the ballot count for this election is completed and to prepare measures to prevent a recurrence.