Criticism over the ballot paper shortage in the 9th nationwide local elections is growing on university campuses. Some universities have also seen moves for signature drives and posting wall posters calling for a response by the general student councils.
According to university circles on the 4th, posts condemning the ballot paper shortage in the June 3 local elections held the previous day were uploaded one after another on campus communities at several universities, including Seoul National University, Yonsei University, Korea University, Sungkyunkwan University, and Sogang University.
On the campus community Everytime, around 9:28 p.m. on the 3rd, a post went up saying, "We will hold a vote on whether Seoul National University students want a rerun." As of 9:20 a.m. on the 4th, 281 people had participated, and among them, 258 (91.8%) selected the option "A rerun is necessary."
A wall-poster-style post also appeared on the Seoul National University community. An anonymous student wrote under the title "Why are we, this time, quiet" that "If voting is something kept only when I win, then that is not a principle."
At Yonsei University, a signed statement urging a response by the general student council was posted on a campus community, and a signature campaign also began. The author said, "This is an incident in which citizens' suffrage was infringed due to the incompetence of a state agency, shaking the foundation of democracy," and demanded, "The general student council should immediately convene, by its authority, a general student meeting with an agenda to condemn and respond to the June 3 local election ballot paper shortage."
The author of the statement also argued that if the general student council refuses, the student self-governance decision-making body should reject the confirmation of the emergency countermeasures committee chair group. According to the author of the statement, as of 10:53 a.m. on the 4th, about 270 people had joined the signature drive.
At Korea University, a post was uploaded arguing that the ballot paper shortage infringed on suffrage. A student who identified as a class of '24 in the Department of History wrote around 5:48 a.m. on the 4th that "The ballot paper shortage is a clear case of mismanagement that undermined confidence in election administration and disrupted the exercise of voters' suffrage." The student added, however, "I do not think claims that the election should be halted immediately and postponed or entirely rerun can be tolerated legally or constitutionally," posting the view that it is right to complete the election procedures and then contest the election's validity afterward through legal procedures.
A master's student at Sungkyunkwan University also posted, under a real name, a wall-poster-style statement on a campus community titled "An election whose procedural legitimacy has collapsed cannot be justified in the name of democracy." The student argued, "The ballot paper shortage, voting delays, and standoffs over ballot box removal raised in this local election are grave issues that damaged trust in the election."
At Sogang University, a current student also posted a wall poster stating, "The state has an obligation to guarantee voters' right to vote," and "We were denied the exercise of sovereignty for the reason that 'papers are lacking,' and the flower of democracy was broken."
Earlier on the 3rd, during the main voting for the 9th nationwide local elections, some polling stations in Seoul's Songpa District, Gangnam District, and Gwangjin District experienced ballot paper shortages, causing voters to wait. According to the National Election Commission, ballot paper shortages occurred at a total of 14 polling stations, including 12 in Songpa District, 1 in Gangnam District, and 1 in Gwangjin District.
Hur Chul-hoon, secretary-general of the National Election Commission, issued a public apology at the commission's offices in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi, on the afternoon of the 3rd, saying, "We deeply feel responsible and sincerely apologize for causing inconvenience to the people who came to the polls to exercise their precious sovereignty and for undermining public trust in fair election management."
The National Election Commission explained that it transported ballot papers to polling stations where they were short and took measures to allow voters waiting to vote even after the closing time. However, after a meeting in the early hours of the 4th, it announced the position that this issue does not constitute grounds for postponing the election or holding a rerun under the Public Official Election Act and that it cannot halt the ongoing ballot count.