Jang Dong-hyuk, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, answers questions from reporters after announcing his candidacy for party leader at the National Assembly Museum in Yeouido, Seoul on the 23rd. Yonhap News

Table of Contents

1. The Shadow of Elections Targeted by Trump's 'OBBBA Act'

2. Why Election Manipulation Was Not Punished

3. 'Unsupervised Technology' is the Enemy of Democracy

4. Whose Responsibility is Election Monitoring?

5. South Korea, Redesign Your Electoral System

The 2020 US presidential election went beyond mere controversy over the results to pose fundamental questions about the very authority for 'election monitoring'.

Who can monitor vote counting, and is that monitoring legally protected? Former President Trump, with this awareness, stipulated the 'institutionalization of private monitoring systems' through the OBBBA (One Big Beautiful Bill Act), signed in July 2025.

This was not only a technical reform (limiting electronic counting machines, principle of manual counting, etc.) but also a measure that acknowledged and institutionalized the fact that the final line of defense in elections is ultimately 'people'.

"Observation is not a right, but a duty"

The OBBBA includes the following key provisions:

△ Prohibition of limiting the number of party observers within the counting stations

△ Guarantee of registration and observation for non-profit private monitoring organizations

△ Obligation to install CCTV within counting stations and to save video in real-time

△ Application of 'election obstruction crime' for interference with observation

This is the first legislation at the federal level in the United States to codify 'citizen monitoring' as a constitutional right and a practical obligation. The Trump camp emphasized the need for 'authorized observation,' stating, "Machines are not supervised. Only people can observe and verify."

Korea's Reality: 'Guilty Without Authority'

In contrast, Korea's observation system exists only in name, lacking substantive authority.

The following issues have been repeated during the general and presidential elections in 2022 and 2024:

△ Cases where party observers were investigated for 'damage' after attempting to check the status of ballot boxes or apply seals

△ The Election Commission arbitrarily restricted the position, number, and time of observers at counting stations

△ Private observation is disallowed due to a lack of legal basis... Access to counting stations is denied without the Election Commission's permission

Article 161 of the Public Official Election Act stipulates the authority of observers, but in practice, they are arbitrarily restricted under the guise of "the Election Commission's policy." There have been cases where observers attempting to observe were treated as obstructors, and those who recorded evidence were expelled.

The Difference Between 'Obstruction of Observation Crime' and 'Authority to Regulate Observation'

The OBBBA designates political parties, private entities, and citizens within counting stations as equal monitoring entities and establishes criminal penalties for interference with them.

However, in Korea, there are no separate legal sanctions even if observers are restricted or expelled. Instead, the system is institutionally tolerated where the Election Commission can expel observers under the pretext of 'maintaining order.' This is a dangerous distortion that transforms 'observers' into 'obstructors.'

Election Monitoring is an Exercise of Sovereignty

Article 1, Clause 2 of the Constitution declares, "The sovereignty of the Republic of Korea resides in the people, and all state authority emanates from the people." However, on election sites, the people remain mere spectators, not observers.

△ Inability to verify the movement of ballots

△ Restriction on photographing the sealed status of early voting ballot boxes

△ Fear of repercussions for raising objections on election day

The OBBBA elevated observation from a 'permitted right' to a 'citizen's duty.'

To the question of who are the monitors of the electoral system, Korea has yet to provide an answer.

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〈Part 5〉 South Korea, Redesign Your Electoral System... The Final Question Posed by OBBBA

What should we change? What are the minimum conditions for restoring institutional trust? We explore the redesign of South Korea's electoral system.

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