Young protesters enter fourth day at Olympic Park: 'We can't let another untrustworthy election happen'

'Rigged election' protest at Olympic Park enters fourth day

Young adults in their 20s and 30s lead self-organized demonstrations

Police maintain crowd management as rally shows signs of continuing

Messages demanding a re-election are posted on a ticket booth near the handball arena at Olympic Park in Songpa-gu, Seoul, on Monday, as the "Jamsil vote-counting center blockade" protest continues. Demonstrators are rallying against the ballot shortage during the June 3 local elections and calling for a re-vote. [Yonhap]

Public anger over a ballot shortage during the June 3 local elections shows no sign of abating. Protests denouncing the National Election Commission's mismanagement entered their fourth consecutive day Monday at Olympic Park in Songpa-gu, Seoul. Large crowds surrounded the park's vote-counting center — the handball arena — over the weekend, with police informally estimating the crowd peaked at around 40,000 at one point. The vast majority were young people in their 20s and 30s. They said they came out voluntarily to protest the violation of their right to vote and were careful to distance themselves from any political faction.

Around 8 a.m. Monday, hundreds of demonstrators stood in front of the handball arena holding handwritten signs and chanting "re-election" repeatedly. Some were spotted in a nearby parking lot catching sleep on picnic mats. As the workweek began, the crowd thinned as protesters left for their jobs and schools.

A 25-year-old office worker who gave only her surname, Kwon, said she had joined the protest the day before and was heading straight to work afterward. "I washed up and did my makeup in the park restroom," she said. Kim Seok-hyeon, 25, a university student, said he had traveled up from Daegu early Saturday morning and had been holding his spot for two days.

Choi, 25, who had stayed through the night, said the scale of the crisis made it impossible to simply walk away. "If we just let this pass, the same thing will happen at the next election," Choi said. "I'm here because I don't want another election we can't trust."

The demonstrators were unanimous in saying their motivation had nothing to do with partisan politics. Notices posted throughout Olympic Park urged participants to chant only about re-election and violations of suffrage — "so our voices are not distorted" — and called on people to "act rationally" and "keep the peace." In that spirit, some far-right groups circulated an informal directive over the weekend asking members to refrain from bringing American flags.

Crowds gather at Olympic Park in Songpa-gu, Seoul, on Saturday afternoon to protest the ballot shortage during the June 3 local elections. Hand-drawn Taegukgi flags and handwritten signs reading "Re-election" and "Citizens' right to vote has been stripped away" are visible throughout the crowd. [Provided by reader]

Notices posted at Olympic Park in Songpa-gu, Seoul, on Sunday, during a rally denouncing the National Election Commission, urge demonstrators to "chant only about re-election and violations of suffrage so our voices are not distorted," to "act rationally so as not to be misunderstood," and to "preserve peace through reason and unity." [Provided by reader]

Park, 27, who visited Olympic Park over the weekend, said he worried the protest would be dismissed as a conspiracy theory about election fraud or tied to a specific political faction. "We are people who are angry because we couldn't vote," he said. Park is a resident of Munjeong 2-dong in Songpa-gu — one of the areas that ran out of ballots — and said he had received a waiting number but ultimately was unable to cast his vote.

A 32-year-old woman surnamed Lee, who lives in Seocho-gu, Seoul, said the violation of suffrage caused by the missing ballots was something everyone, regardless of political leaning, should be furious about. "I participated voluntarily, without any outside forces involved," she said.

The youth-led protest struck a markedly different tone from rallies typically associated with established conservative groups. Participants collectively established ground rules banning political slogans and the waving of American flags. Efforts to maintain order were visible throughout — designated recycling zones were set up and pedestrian routes were marked to prevent accidents.

Seung Sa-yeop, 28, said he had volunteered to hand out over-the-counter medicines, drinks and portable battery packs. "Everyone seems to be making a conscious effort to stay orderly," he said.

Still, factions seeking to push "rigged election" claims were also present at Olympic Park. Signs reading "Election fraud slogans allowed" and "American flags allowed" could be spotted in places.

Voters gathered at Olympic Park in Songpa-gu, Seoul, on Saturday evening to protest the ballot shortage during the June 3 local elections applaud police officers as they leave at the end of their shift. [Provided by reader]

The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions issued a statement Monday saying "the trampling of a citizen's single vote through the incompetence and negligence of a state institution must never happen again," and strongly urging authorities to investigate the causes and carry out reforms to address the failure to protect citizens' right to vote.

Police summoned a civic group that had filed a complaint against National Election Commission officials for questioning. Kim Sun-hwan, secretary-general of the Citizens' Livelihood Committee, appeared at Gangdong Police Station in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, at around 9:35 a.m. Monday. "This is a matter of suffrage that all citizens should hold dear, regardless of political affiliation," Kim said. "Running out of ballots is something even North Korea would laugh at."

Police have deployed approximately 350 riot officers around Olympic Park. Some demonstrators have been circulating rumors that police may soon forcibly disperse the protest. Acting commissioner Yu Jae-seong told opposition lawmakers at a meeting Sunday that "there will be no use of force against the citizens gathered in Jamsil."

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