[WORD_ON_THE_WEB] 'I don’t trust the early voting results'

The National Election Commission (NEC) called for an emergency meeting on Monday morning as criticism mounted over the handling of early voting.

The NEC apologized for failing to accurately pre-estimate the scale of early voting and prepare accordingly. It also apologized for the lack of information about temporary polling booths set up for Covid-19 patients.

The committee then promised that Covid-19 patients and people in quarantine will be able to vote at the same polling stations as regular voters during the election on Wednesday and be allowed to cast their ballot directly into official ballot boxes.

During early voting on March 5, there were problems regarding an insufficient number of ballot boxes and the handling of completed ballots.

#faulty_management
“Is it the 20th century right now? The NEC deserves harsh criticism!”
“What an inefficient group they are. They should have finished preparing before the election took place. It makes no sense to call for an emergency staff meeting now.”

#take_responsive_action
“What I don’t understand is that the NEC is an experienced institute that orchestrated many big elections. Why did they make such a mistake? I’m so disappointed. It’s hard not to feel violated and deprived of the right to vote.”
“The NEC has neglected its duties. There’s no way the committee doesn’t know about the principles of voting directly and secretly. Everyone who was in charge should be questioned. Also, the administration should pay attention this time so that there are no problems regarding the election.”

#unreliable_results
“I don’t trust the early voting results, it feels fishy. The votes should be regarded as invalid.”
“We need to invalidate the early voting and then re-do the election.”

BY LEE SI-YEOUNG, YOO JI-WOO [yoo.jiwoo@joongang.co.kr]