National Election Commission explains inquiries about ballot shortages and delayed response

The National Election Commission explained that, regarding the shortage of ballots at some polling stations in the June 3 local elections, inquiries had come in since the morning, but its response was delayed due to staffing and votecounting preparation issues. At a press meeting at the National Election Commission in Gwacheon on the 5th, commission officials said that ballot shortages also occurred in parts of Seoul, including Songpagu, as well as in Daegu, North Gyeongsang, Busan, and South Gyeongsang. They also explained that they had not been able to sufficiently predict electionday turnout, and that the fact that problems occurred simultaneously at multiple polling stations made response difficult. Regarding why the commission had not prepared ballots reflecting the early voting turnout, it said that for local elections, printing and inspection take a long time, so it had no choice but to begin printing immediately after the candidate registration deadline. However, it said that it is difficult to accurately determine the number of voters who left without voting at the site.