Ballot Paper Shortages at Some Polling Stations in Seoul and the Possibility of an Election Invalidity Lawsuit
We examine the controversy over ballot paper shortages, the key issues in an election invalidation lawsuit, and the court’s standards for judgment. Check whether it affected the outcome, along with overseas cases, to quickly understand the issues.
With ballot shortages occurring at 14 polling stations in Seoul’s Songpa, Gangnam, and Gwangjin districts during the June 3 local elections, the likelihood is growing that a lawsuit will be filed contesting the election results as invalid. The key issue is whether this problem actually affected the election to the extent of changing the outcome.
Legal experts expect the court to closely examine the scale of voters who were unable to cast ballots and the impact by constituency. Overseas, a similar case in the 2021 Berlin local elections, which led to a rerun election, may also serve as a reference.
The Seoul Metropolitan Election Commission extended voting hours until 10 p.m. only for voters who had received a numbered ticket before 6 p.m. at polling stations where ballot shortages occurred. However, a violation of the Public Official Election Act does not automatically render the election invalid, and whether it affected the election results is expected to be the core of the legal judgment.