[Edaily Kim Hyun-jae Reporter BAEK JU-A ] The National Election Commission’s special prosecution team (led by Special Prosecutor Lee Tae-han), which is investigating the ballot shortage during the June 3 local elections and various allegations surrounding the National Election Commission, is accelerating its investigation. Following raids on the National Election Commission and other agencies to investigate allegations of bid-rigging related to the supply of election materials, the team has launched raids on seven regional election commissions nationwide to verify evidence of falsified voter count data.

The Special Prosecutor’s Office announced that starting around 9:10 a.m. on the 15th, it was conducting search and seizure operations at a total of seven locations: the National Election Commission, four provincial and metropolitan election commissions (South Chungcheong, South Jeolla, Gwangju, South Gyeongsang, and Gangwon), and two city, county, and district election commissions (Nam-gu, Busan; and Seogwipo City, Jeju). A total of 31 personnel—including three prosecutors, 20 investigators, and eight digital forensics experts—were mobilized for these raids. The raids were conducted to verify evidence of falsified hourly voter count data entered at 30 cities, counties, and districts nationwide.

The Special Prosecutor’s Office had previously stationed digital forensics investigators at the National Election Commission to secure and analyze data from the election management system and log records of voter counts by time slot at polling stations nationwide. It also investigated approximately 70 National Election Commission officials who were responsible for real-time voter turnout reporting during the June 3 local elections.

Through this process, the Special Prosecutor’s Office announced that, in addition to the five cities, counties, and districts (Seocho and Gangnam Districts in Seoul; Gimpo and Uiwang Cities in Gyeonggi Province; and Jincheon County in North Chungcheong Province) where the NEC’s Joint Investigation Headquarters had previously confirmed falsified voter turnout figures, it had detected similar instances of falsified entries in 25 additional regions.

The regions where additional evidence of false entries was confirmed include: △Seoul’s Guro, Mapo, and Seongbuk Districts △ Guri, Pyeongtaek, Suwon, Yongin, Seongnam, Namyangju, Yeoju, and Dongducheon in Gyeonggi Province △ Cheongju City in North Chungcheong Province △ Seobuk-gu and Dongnam-gu in Seon-an City, as well as Geumsan County in South Chungcheong Province △ Nam-gu in Busan △ Changwon City in South Gyeongsang Province △ Buk-gu in Gwangju △ Mokpo, Gwangyang, and Hwasun County in South Jeolla Province △ Chuncheon City, Jeongseon, and Hwacheon County in Gangwon Province △ Seogwipo City in Jeju Province.

The special prosecution team explained that there is evidence these entities falsified voter counts—including retroactively altering the total figures to false numbers to make it appear as though the number of voters was normal—after the number of voters they had incorrectly entered during specific time periods exceeded the actual final voter count.

A special counsel official stated, “Falsifying vote counts constitutes a serious crime that undermines public trust in the fairness and transparency of elections, leads to distrust in the electoral system itself, and threatens the very foundation of democracy,” adding, “The National Election Commission’s special counsel team plans to focus its investigative efforts on identifying the cause and clearly establishing who is responsible.”

The special counsel for the National Election Commission, which officially launched on the 7th of last month, is investigating allegations related to the June 3 local elections—including the ballot paper shortage, the forced continuation of vote counting, and suspicions of vote count manipulation—as well as △ overseas trips by NEC officials that appeared to be leisure trips, △ preferential treatment in hiring and promotions, and △ allegations of preferential treatment in sole-source contracts for election supplies and collusion with vendors.

The special counsel’s team launched a full-scale investigation on the 17th of last month by conducting raids on 10 locations, including the National Election Commission and local election commissions. The day before (the 14th), to investigate allegations of collusion regarding the supply of election materials, the team raided five locations—including the National Election Commission in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, and election supply companies in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, and Daegu—on charges including breach of trust. The special counsel’s office stated that the total value of the relevant contracts amounts to approximately 5 billion won.

On the 12th, the Special Prosecutor’s Office filed a request with the Seoul Central District Court for a search and seizure warrant targeting the National Election Commission and other entities to investigate allegations of improper payment of allowances to former and current high-ranking judges. However, the court rejected the warrant, stating, “The facts of the case have essentially been established, and it appears the suspects hold differing legal interpretations,” and adding, “There appears to be a significant likelihood that this would substantially disrupt the normal operations of the National Election Commission.”

It is reported that the search and seizure warrant cited charges including loss of public funds and the creation of false official documents. The special counsel’s team has been investigating criminal allegations after determining that, since 2014, the CEC chairperson had been paid 2.9 million won per month and non-standing commissioners 2.15 million won per month in allowances for attending meetings, reviewing agenda items, and under the guise of “expenses for promoting fair elections.” Typically, the Chair of the National Election Commission is a Justice of the Supreme Court, while some non-standing commissioners and the chairs of local election commissions are high-ranking judges.

The special counsel’s team is also coordinating schedules with relevant agencies to conduct a public verification of the ballots currently stored at the Handball Stadium (vote-counting center) in Olympic Park, Songpa-gu, Seoul, later this month.