Officials from the Joint Investigation Team depart the National Election Commission (NEC) in Gwacheon after completing a search and seizure operation on the 23rd. The joint prosecution-police investigation team, formed to uncover the truth behind the ballot paper shortage, conducted searches at the NEC in Gwacheon, as well as the local election commissions in Songpa-gu, Gangnam-gu, and Seocho-gu, starting that morning. [Joint Press Corps]

Two officials from the Songpa-gu Election Commission have been booked and summoned on charges of professional negligence in connection with the ballot paper shortage during the June 3 local elections.

According to legal circles on the 28th, the joint prosecution-police investigation team dedicated to uncovering the infringement of citizens' right to vote (led by Kim Tae-hoon, the third deputy chief prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office) will summon an election officer (A) and a chief of the first election division (B) from the Songpa-gu Election Commission today for questioning as suspects charged with professional negligence.

Officer A and others are suspected of failing to take preventative measures despite the existence of prior conditions that could have signaled a potential ballot shortage at specific polling stations during the June 3 local elections.

They are also suspected of ignoring requests from local polling stations for additional ballot papers and failing to respond immediately.

These individuals are suspects who were newly identified and booked by the joint investigation team during the course of the investigation following its launch.

While the joint investigation team has previously questioned previously accused NEC officials as suspects, this marks the first time they have investigated individuals they personally booked for charges.

The joint investigation team is also investigating circumstances discovered at a polling station under the Songpa-gu Election Commission, where a single serial number was found to have been duplicated on two separate ballot papers.

The investigation team also scheduled questioning for two NEC officials today as witnesses regarding the "overseas junket allegations" involving former NEC Chairperson Noh Tae-ak and others.

The Songpa-gu Election Commission in Seoul undergoing a search and seizure by the joint investigation team on the 23rd. An official is sitting at an office desk. The joint prosecution-police investigation team, formed to uncover the truth behind the ballot shortage, announced that it has been conducting searches at the NEC in Gwacheon and the local election commissions in Songpa-gu, Gangnam-gu, and Seocho-gu since that morning.

The search and seizure of the NEC’s servers, related to the "voter turnout and statistics manipulation scandal," is also ongoing.

The joint investigation team is looking into evidence that lower-level NEC staff responsible for local polling station management during the June 3 local elections arbitrarily modified statistical figures in the election management system to conceal errors in voter counts.

The investigation suggests that instead of following the required procedure—which involves reporting input errors to superiors and obtaining approval before making corrections—staff members manipulated the statistics by arbitrarily inputting false data.

In response, the joint investigation team initiated search and seizure operations on the 23rd at the NEC in Gwacheon and the local election commissions in Songpa-gu, Gangnam-gu, and Seocho-gu to secure relevant documents.

The search of the servers, which requires significant time for data acquisition, was paused over the weekend and resumed yesterday.

Once the analysis of the seized materials is complete, the joint investigation team plans to summon the individuals involved to determine the circumstances and the scope of the statistical manipulation.