Recount of the Tongyeong mayoral election [Photo=Yonhap News]South Korea's liberal democracy is dying. The National Election Commission (NEC), which has degraded into a criminal organization through the manipulation of voter turnout data, and the judiciary, far from repenting for their arrogance and self-righteousness, have ignored the voices of observers demanding substantive truth at the Tongyeong mayoral election recount site.

This recount for the Tongyeong mayoral election was marred from the start by thorough secrecy and obstruction. Lee Young-hoon, head of the Gyeongnam Election Commission and Chief Judge of the Changwon District Court, banned video recording—a fundamental aspect of vote counting—without any legal basis. When strong protests erupted at the scene, he displayed his arrogance by begrudgingly allowing only still photography. 

At the Gyeongnam Tongyeong mayoral election recount, objections regarding "pristine, brick-like bundles of fake ballots" that showed no signs of folding were dismissed. Requests to submit ballot image files were refused, and the direct comparison between readily available image files and the actual ballots was ignored. No one but the voters could have created genuine ballots. It appears that because fake ballots created by fakers leave behind traces of their falsehood, the authorities prohibited the comparison itself. 

The NEC even refused to provide the "scanner image files" they once boasted would guarantee transparency, effectively blocking any comparison with the actual ballots. This deceptive behavior, which contradicts the purpose of a recount—to identify the true winner by establishing the truth—proves that the NEC itself is a criminal entity.

Even more shocking is the horrific reality of ballot storage and the physical state of the ballots revealed at the recount site. There was no CCTV at the ballot storage site where it is mandatory. Ballot boxes showed clear signs that the original tapes had been torn off and replaced, with stamps reapplied, or the tape was entirely loose. We cannot help but suspect that the ballot boxes were tampered with or swapped.

The NEC excused this by citing a "re-counting process on the day of the election," but this is clear evidence of manipulated and fraudulent elections. It constitutes a direct violation of the principle that seals must never be broken arbitrarily and, even if they are, that observers from all parties must be present.

In particular, a large number of pristine, "brand-new" advance voting ballots—which showed no signs of folding and could hardly be considered to have passed through the hands of voters—were found, yet all were processed as valid votes. When observers attempted to use tools like smartphone magnifiers to verify the authenticity of the ballots, they were unjustly stopped and expelled. Preventing the use of verification tools is nothing more than a confession of election fraud.

Therefore, we strongly condemn the Gyeongnam Election Commission and the Changwon District Court for covering up the truth and discarding judicial justice, labeling them as organizations that protect election fraud. In the name of the sovereign people, we demand the following with utmost gravity:

First, is the recount a process for uncovering the truth, or a criminal act to cover it up? 

The Gyeongnam Election Commission and the Changwon District Court looked at the abnormal physical state of the advance ballots and the poorly printed ballots but failed to request an investigation or clarify the truth. Not a single recount conducted since the April 15 general election has been convincing to the public.

Among the approximately 120 election nullification lawsuits filed immediately after the 21st April 15 general election, the Supreme Court conducted manual recounts and physical inspections in only five districts: Incheon Yeonsu-gu B, Gyeongnam Yangsan-si B, Seoul Yeongdeungpo-gu B, Gyeonggi Osan-si, and Gyeonggi Paju-si B. The Supreme Court dismissed all lawsuits on the grounds that there was insufficient objective evidence of systematic election fraud. The recount appeared to be a desperate measure to cover up suspicions without requesting an investigation, rather than a process to find the truth.

The Gyeongnam Election Commission and the Changwon District Court failed to provide a convincing explanation for the numerous instances of printing defects—such as the abnormal physical form of advance ballots, fake ballots suspected to be printed materials because ink did not bleed through to the back, inconsistent margins, and striped ballots characteristic of high-speed printing—simply dismissing them as "output errors." This became the decisive trigger for growing distrust in the recount process.

Second, re-verify the recount that concealed election fraud in an open and transparent manner.

Because the formalistic, secret recount process only fuels distrust, all verification procedures must be transparently broadcast live to the media and the public. Furthermore, in the presence of independent experts and observers from all walks of life, the physical ballots must be thoroughly compared against the computerized data to ensure not a single error remains.

To prove the integrity of the election computer system, all scanned image files and system logs generated during the counting process must be disclosed transparently in their original state. Additionally, we urge the judiciary to prevent the concealment or destruction of key evidence and to resolve public outrage regarding the election system through rigorous, legally sound verification.

Third, arrest and investigate the Chief Judge of the Changwon District Court for conducting a recount while aware of fake ballots.

We contend that the acts of Chief Judge Lee Young-hoon of the Changwon District Court and other responsible officials—who allowed the recount to proceed despite the contamination of the site, including broken ballot box seals and the appearance of mass-produced "brand-new" and poorly printed ballots, without even requesting an investigation—are unforgivable acts of trying to hide the sun with one's palm.

Lee Young-hoon, who committed a heinous secondary crime by covering up election fraud despite seeing it with his own eyes, will not be able to escape the maximum legal penalty. Lee Young-hoon and all those responsible for conducting the fraudulent recount should be reported to the U.S. CIA. They must be arrested immediately and held legally accountable.

We declare that we will continue our all-out struggle until the day our constitutional order is restored, the rights of each constitutional institution are protected, and the movement to eradicate election fraud transforms into a "10 Million People Power" movement, honoring the spirit of the June 3 sovereignty struggle that sought to reclaim the voting rights lost during the June 3 incident.

July 28, 2026

All members of the Serverkka June 3 Save-the-Nation Comrades Association