Amendment to Public Official Election Act submitted to National Assembly
People Power Party Rep. Ko Dong-jin, who represents Gangnam-gu's third district in Seoul and sits on the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee, announced Tuesday that he submitted an amendment to the Public Official Election Act on Monday. The bill would require election-day ballots to be printed at between 70 and 100 percent of the number of registered voters, amid an unprecedented ballot shortage that hit some polling stations during the June 3 local elections.
Ko said the bill is premised on the historical average early voting turnout of 20 to 30 percent. Even accounting for the likelihood of leftover ballots on election day and voters who do not cast a ballot, each local election commission must be required by law to print ballots for at least 70 percent — and up to 100 percent — of all registered voters, without exception, he said.
Under current law, district- and city-level election commissions are required only to prepare ballots and deliver them to precinct-level commissions by the day before the election. The law contains no separate provision governing how many ballots must be printed, leaving the National Election Commission to manage printing through its own discretionary internal guidelines.
For the June 3 elections, the commission applied a guideline under its "9th Nationwide Simultaneous Local Elections Comprehensive Management Guidelines" that allowed it to reduce the number of election-day ballots printed — down to a floor of 50 percent of registered voters — when a committee vote determined that reduced printing was warranted based on projected early voting turnout and recent turnout trends. That provision has drawn criticism as the direct cause of the ballot shortage. It has also emerged that the budget for ballot printing had been secured at a level equivalent to 110 percent of all registered voters.
Ko's bill would legally require each district- and city-level election commission to print election-day ballots within a range of 70 to 100 percent of registered voters, with the exact number to be determined by a vote of each commission. The measure is designed to ensure voters can cast ballots without disruption and that a sufficient reserve supply is maintained.
The bill also includes a legal mechanism requiring that all ballot management matters — including printing and delivery to polling stations — be tracked through a separate, objective management ledger.
"We will establish a legal standard for ballot printing so that a shortage like the one we saw in the last local elections never happens again," Ko said.
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