The joint investigation headquarters (합수본) investigating the 6·3 local election ballot paper shortage has launched a forceful probe into the Central Election Commission, uncovering allegations that election officials falsified real-time voter turnout rates on election day. According to the investigation led by Kim Tae-hoon, head of the joint investigation headquarters and 3rd deputy chief prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, authorities conducted simultaneous raids on the Central Election Commission in Gwacheon and the Gyeonggi Election Commission in Suwon on July 23 to secure mobile phones and work logs from personnel who handled voter turnout tallies during the June vote.
Investigation Details and Suspects in the Falsified Turnout Case
According to the joint investigation headquarters, search and seizure warrants explicitly named two working-level staff members from the Central Election Commission and the Gyeonggi Election Commission as suspects facing charges of forging official electronic records and obstructing official duties. The raids followed a previous round of searches conducted on July 11 regarding the ballot paper shortage, with investigators aiming to secure additional evidence regarding how election day statistics were handled. Investigators state that on June 3, staff at the Gyeonggi Election Commission received reports from a city, county, or district election office that a staff member had mistakenly entered hundreds of voters as thousands—such as logging 1,000 voters instead of 100 at a single polling station.
Rather than following official correction procedures, the Gyeonggi official consulted with a Central Election Commission staff member to manually and arbitrarily adjust the system entries. Investigators found that instead of fixing the erroneous 1,000-count back to 100 through proper channels, the staff arbitrarily increased the voter counts by 100 people across nine neighboring polling stations to make the numbers match. The joint investigation headquarters revealed that an internal messenger conversation showed the Central Election Commission staff member suggesting to the Gyeonggi official to “do ‘number matching’ without reporting to higher-ups.”
Strict Turnout Reporting Rules and Potential Discrepancies
Under official election guidelines, local election offices report hourly voter figures collected from polling stations nationwide into an electronic system, and any necessary corrections require approval through a formal report and resolution process submitted by provincial election commissions to the Central Election Commission. If the current allegations are proven true, the hourly national voter counts publicized by the election commission on election day may have diverged significantly from actual turnout figures. The joint investigation headquarters stated that once analysis of the seized materials is complete, they will summon election commission officials to investigate the background of the false entries and examine whether similar “number matching” practices occurred in regions outside of Gyeonggi.
Did You Know?
The joint investigation headquarters conducted its first round of searches on July 11 targeting the Central Election Commission and other local offices including Songpa, Gangnam, and Seocho gu election commissions to investigate the ballot paper shortage before uncovering the separate turnout-falsification allegations.
Expert Insight
Frequently Asked Questions
What triggered the joint investigation headquarters raids on July 23?
According to the joint investigation headquarters, authorities carried out simultaneous raids on the Central Election Commission and the Gyeonggi Election Commission to secure evidence regarding allegations that election officials falsified real-time voter turnout rates on election day.
How are election turnout figures supposed to be corrected under official guidelines?
According to election procedures, hourly numbers reported by local polling offices can only be modified after the regional provincial election commission submits a report and obtains formal approval through the Central Election Commission’s reporting and decision process.
Who are the primary targets of the current criminal probe?
According to the search warrants cited by investigators, two working-level staff members from the Central Election Commission and the Gyeonggi Election Commission are designated as suspects facing charges of public electronic record forgery and obstruction of official duties.
? How will the joint investigation headquarters proceed with the case moving forward?