Election Commission apologizes again over confirmed cases' early voting controversy: "Will present drastic measures on the 7th"

Apology Repeatedly Issued Regarding Late-Night Confirmed Case Vote Management
Problems Revealed in Survey Results
"Full Committee Meeting to Be Held on the 7th for Final Announcement"

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] The National Election Commission disclosed the results of an investigation into issues that occurred during the early voting process of COVID-19 confirmed patients in the presidential election and apologized once again. On the 7th, the Commission held a full meeting and promised to implement drastic measures.

On the night of the 6th, the Commission stated, "We deeply apologize to the public for the confusion and inconvenience caused during the early voting of COVID-19 confirmed voters." This apology was stronger compared to their previous statement expressing regret and apology for the inconvenience caused to COVID-19 confirmed voters during early voting.

The Commission also revealed the problems found in the investigation. Regarding voting preparation, the Commission admitted, "▲Voters were not properly informed in advance about the method of voting at temporary polling booths, leading to complaints or refusal to vote, and ▲the envelopes containing ballots marked by voters were transported to polling stations in inconsistent ways such as baskets or paper bags, indicating insufficient preparation of materials."

In terms of the environment, it was disclosed that "▲Polling stations were cramped, causing the paths of confirmed voters and general voters to overlap, ▲Even after general voters finished voting, confirmed voters were not allowed to vote inside the polling station due to facility managers' refusal, and ▲There were cases where temporary polling booths were set up in warehouses."

Regarding vote management, it was confirmed that "▲Envelopes given to confirmed voters for temporary polling booths already contained marked ballots, ▲Voters' names were written on the back of ballots, and ▲The early voting rate of confirmed patients was not properly predicted, causing voters to wait outside for long periods in cold weather."

In particular, the Commission stated, "We are well aware of the problem that ballots marked by confirmed patients were not directly inserted into the ballot box," adding, "This stems from a failure to thoroughly prepare for all possible accidents, and our Commission deeply regrets not meeting the public's trust and expectations for stable election management."

In this regard, the Commission promised, "We will prepare drastic measures, including methods for confirmed voters to directly insert their marked ballots into the ballot box, and announce them after confirmation at the full Commission meeting."

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