Controversy Over 'Poor Management' of Early Voting for Confirmed Cases Spreads... "Separate Counting of Votes from Confirmed Cases Needed," Petition to Blue House

"Certification Circulates Claiming Voting Process Was Flawed... Don't Want to Believe It"
"Request to Individually Count Votes of Confirmed Cases to Resolve Distrust"

On the afternoon of the 5th, a confirmed patient is casting a vote at a polling station set up outdoors at the Sapa-dong Community Center in Seongsan-gu, Changwon-si, Gyeongnam. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] The National Election Commission (NEC) is facing distrust from some voters over allegations of 'poor management' of early voting for COVID-19 confirmed and quarantined individuals in the presidential election. There has even been a petition on the Blue House's National Petition Board demanding separate counting of votes from general voters and those confirmed or quarantined.

On the 5th, a post titled "Request for Separate Announcement of 2022 Confirmed Cases Voting Results" was uploaded on the Blue House National Petition Board. The petitioner wrote, "Instead of voters directly placing their ballots into the ballot box, election staff collected them, causing protests in various places," and added, "Photos showing ballots being poorly managed in paper bags and delivery boxes are being uploaded on social media."

They continued, "I hope this is false, but there are even certifications circulating that some people voted twice due to lax identity verification for confirmed voters," expressing, "I do not want to believe that such things are happening in South Korea in 2022, especially in a presidential election."

Furthermore, they stated, "To alleviate the anxiety and distrust of many citizens, I request separate counting of votes from confirmed cases in this election," and argued, "If there is a significant discrepancy between the number of confirmed voters who participated and the number of confirmed ballots, those votes should be invalidated and a re-vote conducted."

On the 5th, a post demanding "separate tallying of confirmed case data" was uploaded on the Blue House National Petition Board, showing that some voters still cannot overcome their distrust. / Photo by Blue House National Petition Board capture

They also criticized, "If (election fraud) is proven true, the NEC must bear heavy responsibility for the poor management." This petition, currently private, was confirmed to have met the requirement of 100 preliminary endorsements by the afternoon of the 6th. National petitions are officially posted after 100 preliminary endorsements and, if they receive more than 200,000 endorsements within 30 days, the Blue House provides an official response.

Meanwhile, amid growing controversy over poor management of early voting, the NEC issued an official statement and apologized on the same day.

The NEC said, "We deeply regret and apologize for the inconvenience caused to COVID-19 confirmed voters during early voting," adding, "This election saw the highest early voting turnout ever, and due to the high participation enthusiasm, limitations in election staff, and polling station facilities, there were shortcomings in managing early voting for confirmed voters."

However, regarding the possibility of election fraud, they drew a clear line, stating, "All processes guaranteed observation by party-nominated observers, so there is absolutely no possibility of fraud."

They emphasized, "The temporary polling station voting method implemented this time was in accordance with laws and regulations."

They added, "The commission takes this matter very seriously," and "We will accurately identify and thoroughly review the revealed issues and promptly prepare measures so that citizens can vote with confidence on election day."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.