Were voters marked as having already voted even though they had not cast an early ballot? Election commission says a mistake is possible

During the June 3 local elections, a series of allegations emerged that some voters were marked as having already voted even though they had not cast an early ballot, leaving them unable to exercise their voting rights on election day. The National Election Commission (NEC) also acknowledged that it is possible a different voter may have been incorrectly looked up during the manual entry of ID information. However, the NEC said it could not confirm any actual cases of mistaken processing.

A review of Financial News reporting on the 25th found that Kim Eun-hye's office of the People Power Party had received numerous tips describing such cases. According to her office, a resident identified as A, 31, from Yeongdeungpo District, Seoul, visited a local polling station on election day, the 3rd, with his older sister, B, but was unable to vote because he had been recorded as having already cast an early ballot. A and his sister said they had experienced the same problem during the 19th South Korean presidential election in 2017. Although the polling locations were different, other reports were said to be broadly similar. The complaints centered on voters being denied their right to participate because the integrated voter register showed them as having completed early voting.

When Kim's office asked whether such cases could occur due to the system, the NEC replied, "If an ID document that the identity verification device cannot automatically recognize is submitted, the election worker must enter the voter's information manually, and in that process, the wrong voter may be looked up."

In other words, if an ID card with damage severe enough that a machine cannot read it is presented at an early voting site, the early voting staff member must type the voter's information directly into the system. In that process, they may make a typo in the resident registration number or name.

If the staff member then issues a ballot without noticing the error, it means the wrong voter, who did not actually vote, is recorded in the voter register as having already voted.

The NEC also acknowledges the possibility of mistaken voter processing. That is why it separately operates procedures for handling erroneous ballot issuance. According to the NEC, early voting stations compare the stored image of the ID belonging to a person marked as having already voted with the ID presented by the visitor, and if the person is confirmed to be someone who has not yet voted, a ballot is reissued. The NEC said that on election day as well, voters can still cast a ballot after verification by the polling manager. However, the commission has not disclosed how many such mistaken issuances have occurred. Kim criticized the system, saying, "The early voting system, which was promoted for its efficiency, is now producing side effects that undermine the election's first principles of equality and fairness one after another. To properly protect the people's voting rights guaranteed by the Constitution, a fundamental review, including the abolition of early voting, is necessary."

In response, the NEC added that, as part of measures to prevent mistaken ballot issuance, it is appointing civil servants as early voting staff whenever possible for key duties involving voter identity verification and is also strengthening related training.



yesji@fnnews.com Kim Ye-ji, Jang Yu-ha Reporter