Protest continues to block vote counting stations in the June 3rd local elections (Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Kim In-chul = Citizens, claiming fraudulent elections, are chanting slogans in front of the Handball Stadium at the Olympic Park in Songpa-gu, Seoul, on the 7th, as the 'Jamsil vote counting station blockade protest' continues, condemning the shortage of ballots in the June 3rd local elections and demanding a re-election. 2026.6.7 yatoya@yna.co.kr

The National Election Commission announced on the 8th that additional ballots were sent to 140 polling stations nationwide on the day of the June 3rd local elections to supplement shortages.

In a press release, the Election Commission stated that it identified 140 out of 14,288 polling stations nationwide as having expected ballot shortages and thus received additional shipments.

This figure is an increase of 73 compared to the investigation results announced by the Election Commission on the 5th.

By region, Seoul had 53, Gyeonggi had 36, Incheon had 18, Busan had 9, Daegu had 7, Gyeongnam had 5, Jeonnam had 4, Ulsan had 3, Gangwon had 2, and Chungbuk, Jeonbuk, and Gyeongbuk each had 1.

The number of polling stations where the additionally sent ballots were actually used in voting increased by 41 from the 5th, totaling 91 polling stations.

In Seoul, the number increased from the existing 33 to 42, and in Incheon, from 6 to 11. Additional cases were also found in Gyeonggi (23), Jeonnam (2), Chungbuk (1), and Jeonbuk (1).

The number of polling stations where voting was temporarily suspended due to ballot shortages and then resumed also increased by 4, to 26.

Specifically, Songpa-gu in Seoul increased from 12 to 15 locations, and Buk-gu in Busan, Dong-gu in Daegu, and Gimpo in Gyeonggi each had one additional case.

On the other hand, Yeonsu-gu in Incheon decreased from 3 to 1. The decrease of 2 appears to be because ballot shortages were confirmed, but voting was not halted.

The Election Commission will operate a 'Fact-Finding Committee on Ballot Shortage Incidents' from the 10th to the 19th to investigate the causes and determine responsibility for this ballot shortage incident.

The committee will be composed of a total of 6 external members recommended by civic groups, the legal profession, the media, and academia. Attorney Jo Hyun-wook, former president of the Korea Women Lawyers Association, will serve as the chairperson.

The committee will investigate the overall process, including ballot printing, allocation, and supply management. It also plans to assess the appropriateness of polling station operations, initial response measures, and reporting systems after the incident occurred.

In addition, it plans to investigate whether there are any additional polling stations where ballot shortages occurred.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission announced that Senior Member Wi Cheol-hwan will act as the interim president of the National Election Commission, following Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae's notification of the termination of Nominee Noh Tae-ak's appointment.

The resignation of Secretary-General Heo Cheol-hoon has also been accepted, and Deputy Secretary-General Kang Dong-wan will act as the interim Secretary-General. Furthermore, the Election Commission has decided to remove the Director of the Election Policy Bureau and the Director of the First Election Bureau from their positions as of the 9th.