The National Election Commission apologized for the ballot shortage during the 9th nationwide local elections held simultaneously on June 3, saying it "failed to distribute ballots by polling place." The National Election Commission said that while about 42,000 ballots remained across all of Songpa District in Seoul, some polling places did not receive proper allocations, leading to voting being halted and some voters being unable to cast ballots.
Acting National Election Commission Chair Wi Cheol-hwan issued a statement titled "A message to the people" on the 11th, saying, "With a heavy heart, I offer an apology for the ballot shortage that infringed on the people's suffrage." Wi has been serving as acting chair since the 8th, following the Supreme Court's notice rescinding the designation of former chair Roh Tae-ak.
Regarding the Songpa case, Wi explained, "The 50% printing ratio for election day ballots is a concept excluding the 23.3% early voting rate, so the overall ballot printing ratio is 73.3%."
Songpa District had 565,368 eligible voters and an overall turnout of 65.8%, so by the districtwide standard, about 42,000 ballots remained. On this, Wi said, "Failing to distribute ballots by polling place among the 146 polling places in Songpa was a grievous mistake."
According to the "Status and countermeasures report on election day ballot shortages" released by the National Election Commission, Songpa's remaining ballots specifically totaled 42,747. Songpa printed 282,800 ballots, which was 50.02% of its voters, while Jamsil 3-dong and Jamsil 4-dong printed 60%.
The lower limit for the problematic election day ballot printing ratio was reduced from 60% to 50% ahead of this election. Wi said, "After the previous election, remaining ballots increased, creating difficulties in inspection and storage for millions of ballots, and there were also concerns about loss, theft, and seizure." He added, "In particular, when an excessive number of ballots were printed relative to election day turnout, we were plagued by allegations of election fraud; there were on-the-ground calls to lower the minimum in areas where early voting rose and election day voting fell; and the short printing window made it hard to secure ballot printers."
The National Election Commission said it commissioned a policy research project from The Korea Institute of Public Administration (KIPA) in 2022, and, reflecting the findings of a procedures-improvement task force (TF) composed of field staff, adjusted the minimum election day ballot printing ratio to 50%. The comprehensive management guidelines for the 9th nationwide local elections were revised by approval of the secretary general on Dec. 10, 2025, and the public office election procedure manual was revised by approval of the director general for election policy on Dec. 24 of the same year.
The ballot shortage was not limited to Songpa. According to the National Election Commission report, as of the 8th, ballot shortage cases were confirmed in 12 provinces and metropolitan cities nationwide, 49 districts and cities and counties, and 140 polling places. Of these, 91 polling places actually used ballots that were sent additionally. Twenty-six polling places experienced temporary suspensions and resumptions of voting that led to voter wait times.
Seoul had the most polling places that used additionally sent ballots, with 42. In Seoul, this included 20 in Songpa, seven in Seongbuk, five in Gangnam, four in Gwangjin, and two in Seocho. Additionally sent ballots were also used due to shortages at 23 polling places in Gyeonggi, 11 in Incheon, four in Daegu, and three in Busan.
The National Election Commission cited as causes of this incident: ▲ improper calculation of the ballot printing ratio ▲ inadequate situational assessment on election day ▲ lack of specific work processing standards ▲ insufficient crisis response systems. It said past polling place-by-polling place turnout rates were not sufficiently considered, and even as election day turnout rose, remaining ballot quantities by polling place were not properly tracked.
According to the National Election Commission report, Songpa had higher turnout than the Seoul average but a lower printing ratio. In the 9th local elections, Songpa's turnout was 65.8%, 2.2 percentage points higher than Seoul's average of 63.6%, and the fourth highest among Seoul's 25 districts. However, Songpa's printing ratio was 50%, lower than Seocho's 60–90%, Seongdong's 60–70%, and Yangcheon's 60%.
As a follow-up measure, the National Election Commission said it would reexamine the appropriate ballot printing ratio, including abolishing the 50% minimum. It will also devise a method to determine precise ballot quantities by considering turnout by precinct, standards and reporting lines for additional ballot distribution, and plans to activate crisis response teams on voting and counting day.
Wi said the detailed circumstances would be revealed through an investigation by a fact-finding committee composed of external members, probes by law enforcement agencies, and a National Assembly inquiry. "We will proceed with follow-up responses with a grave awareness that not even a single person's right to vote should be infringed," Wi said.
A joint investigation team of prosecutors and police also launched a probe. Beginning that morning, the team raided seven locations, including the National Election Commission in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi; the Seoul Election Commission; and the district election commissions of Songpa, Seocho, Gangnam, Gwangjin, and Dongjak. The team plans to review ballot printing plans, minutes, and budget materials it has secured to determine how the ballot shortage occurred and whether election officials acted intentionally or negligently.