54 disturbances reported in Seoul area alone during presidential election

Koreans cast their ballots in the presidential election on Tuesday, at a polling station set up at a gymnasium in Gangnam-gu, southern Seoul. (Yonhap)
Koreans cast their ballots in the presidential election on Tuesday, at a polling station set up at a gymnasium in Gangnam-gu, southern Seoul. (Yonhap)

As Koreans went to the polls to select the next leader on Tuesday, 54 minor incidents related to the election process were reported to the police in Seoul from the time the voting booths opened at 6 a.m. to noon.

In one such incident, two men and one woman came to the voting booth installed at an elementary school in Seocho-gu, southern Seoul at around 8:53 a.m., dressed in red and left a red balloon with the message "President Kim Moon-soo" at the entrance. Red is the color representing the People Power Party and its candidate Kim.

Officials of the National Election Commission removed the balloons, citing violation of the Public Officials Election Act that bans public support of certain candidate from 100 meters within the election booth.

A 56-year-old woman in another Seocho-gu voting booth reported an election law violation, in which NEC officials were found to have stamped the ballots with the NEC mark before handing them to the voters. Officials said they had marked the ballots in advance in case they were overwhelmed by a massive influx of voters in the booth.

In the northern region of Seoul in Gangbuk-gu, a woman in her 60s insisted on checking the voters list to see if her name had been removed, after she had already participated in the early voting process.

Many supporters of the People Power Party, to which ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol belonged until he left it last month, have shared the views by the disgraced former leader that several of the past elections have been rigged in favor of the liberal bloc. The claim, despite never being proved despite several investigations under the authority of Yoon himself, has sparked suspicion among some voters that such manipulation would occur during the presidential election.

A 60-year-old Seoul resident was seen counting the voters entering the polling station set up in Choongam High School, Yoon's alma mater in Seoul. Standing outside the station since 6 a.m., he said he was not affiliated with any organization but is personally making sure that no unlawful activities occur.

In the neighboring city of Jecheon of Gyeonggi Province, a voter said that that one was marked as having already voted despite not voting yet. The records show that the voter had already received a ballot, and the NEC officials — who refused to reveal the detailed information on the matter — are checking to see if the voter's claim is true.

Election officials on Jeju Island caught two residents who tried to cast ballots on Tuesday, despite having already participated in the early voting last week. Attempting to vote multiple times is subject to up to five years in prison or a 10 million won ($7,250) fine.


minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com