SEOUL — Opposition lawmakers and party observers temporarily blocked the removal of approximately 2.47 million Songpa District ballots from Seoul’s Olympic Park early Thursday morning, demanding additional safeguards and the preservation of potential evidence following a marathon verification process.
The standoff on October 29, 2026, followed a 13-hour public review conducted by a special-counsel team led by Lee Tae-han in coordination with the National Election Commission (NEC). The inspection, which began at 11:49 a.m. on October 28, concluded at 12:36 a.m. Thursday at the Olympic Park Handball Gymnasium.
Sit-in Delays Transport for Nearly Six Hours
Following the conclusion of the review, members and lawmakers of the People Power Party—including party leader Jang Dong-hyuk and Supreme Council member Kim Min-soo—launched an overnight sit-in near the ballot storage area. The protest successfully halted the planned transport of the election materials for roughly five hours and 50 minutes.
Jang argued during the demonstration that transferring the ballots before more comprehensive examinations could compromise evidence tied to allegations of election-management irregularities. Despite the protest, the transfer eventually commenced at approximately 6:18 a.m., with the boxes cleared from the site by 6:40 a.m. under NEC supervision.
The contested materials were relocated to a secure, NEC-designated warehouse within the Seoul metropolitan area. According to election officials, out of roughly 420 total boxes, all but 13 were moved. The remaining 13 boxes were retained under the direct handling of the special-counsel team after observers raised specific objections or investigators determined they warranted further forensic scrutiny.
Background and Investigation Context
The special-counsel team stated that the initial public review provided no legal grounds to halt the broader transfer of the ballots, though investigators identified a considerable subset of documents requiring deeper forensic analysis. The operation brought to a close a 148-day storage period at the Olympic Park venue, where the ballots had remained since the June 3 local elections.
The dispute underscores ongoing scrutiny between investigators, election authorities, and opposition figures regarding the custody and verification of local election records.
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