Ballot boxes trapped for 19 hours as protesters block polling site in Seoul's Songpa-gu

Ballot boxes unmoved 18 hours after polls closed

Seoul election official's apology met with defiance

Protesters settle in with plastic chairs for long standoff

NEC to establish fact-finding committee

Two ballot boxes stored inside Polling Station No. 2 in Jamsil 7-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul, as seen around 1 p.m. Thursday. The boxes could not be moved after polls closed the previous day, blocked by protesters. [Provided by reader]

An unprecedented ballot paper shortage has triggered a prolonged standoff outside Polling Station No. 2 in Jamsil 7-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul, where ballot boxes containing roughly 2,000 votes remain trapped inside. Protesters, insisting the election cannot be trusted, are demanding a re-run. Election workers and observers inside the polling site were still unable to leave as of Thursday afternoon — more than 18 hours after polls closed.

Around 1 p.m. Thursday, some 300 protesters had gathered in front of the senior citizens' center at Woosung Apartments in Jamsil 7-dong, Songpa-gu — the site that served as a polling station the previous day. Wielding megaphones, they chanted slogans including "This is a scene of election fraud — arrest those responsible" and "Hold a re-election."

Protesters wrapped in or carrying large South Korean flags surrounded both entrances to the senior citizens' center. About 10 people blocked the rear entrance with chairs.

Kim Beom-jin, secretary-general of the Seoul Metropolitan Election Commission, visited the site around 10:45 a.m. Thursday to persuade the protesters to stand down, but the standoff continued. "What matters right now is that the vote count must be finalized before a winner can be declared," Kim said. "I apologize on behalf of the Seoul Metropolitan Election Commission for the concern caused by certain shortcomings in the election process." The crowd responded with shouts of "This is fraud" and "How can we trust you?"

Hundreds of plastic chairs began arriving at the senior citizens' center from the afternoon onward, with some protesters staking out positions at the entrance in what appeared to be preparation for a prolonged sit-in.

Protesters surround the senior citizens' center at Woosung Apartments in Jamsil 7-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul — Polling Station No. 2 — blocking the removal of ballot boxes, around 1 p.m. Thursday. [Lee Young-ki]

With no end to the standoff in sight, election workers and observers still inside the polling site have been under severe stress. A person in their 20s identified only as A, an observer keeping watch over the ballot boxes inside the senior citizens' center, said some older observers had already left but those remaining faced a dangerous situation. "The people outside think we're all election commission staff, and when we try to leave, they try to harm us," A said.

A added that threats were being shouted from outside. "I'm scared. I barely slept last night — they kept yelling outside and I couldn't get any rest," A said.

The polling station had run out of ballot papers during the afternoon the previous day. Residents who had not yet voted by the official closing time of 6 p.m. were given queue tickets, and voting hours were extended until 10 p.m.

The National Election Commission issued a statement Thursday saying it would establish a fact-finding committee composed primarily of outside experts to investigate why some polling stations ran short of ballot papers on election day. "We will first analyze the voting records of the relevant polling stations and confirm the on-site situation with polling managers and staff," the NEC said. "We will thoroughly examine the problems identified, their causes and who bears responsibility, and will disclose all findings in full to the public."

20ki@heraldcorp.com