Discrepancies have been identified between final voter figures and on-site tallies from South Korea's June 3 local elections, according to data submitted to a lawmaker. Investigators are examining the possibility of data manipulation by election officials.
These discrepancies raise serious questions about the integrity of the local election results and could lead to further investigations into potential data manipulation by election officials.
Discrepancies have been found between final voter figures and on-site tallies from South Korea's June 3 local elections, according to data acquired by Rep. Chung Choon-saeng of the minor Rebuilding Korea Party. The National Election Commission (NEC) data revealed that these discrepancies occurred in 1,971 neighborhoods out of the total 3,558 across the nation.
Further analysis of the NEC data indicated that discrepancies of at least 100 people were reported in 29 neighborhoods, including in Seoul, Busan, and Gyeonggi Province. These revelations have prompted investigators to examine the possibility that election officials may have manipulated data even after voting concluded.
The ongoing probe is being conducted by a joint prosecution-police team that is also investigating ballot shortages on election day. This team has reportedly found signs that NEC officials arbitrarily manipulated hourly voter turnout updates to conceal errors. The NEC, however, has maintained that its hourly turnout figures are tentative and that discrepancies with actual voter numbers are inevitable.