[21st General Election Highlights] Tearing Ballots, Denied Without ID... Commotion at Polling Stations

Arrests in Seoul, Gimpo, Uijeongbu, and More
Police Deploy 28,000 Officers Nationwide at Polling Stations

On the 15th, the 21st National Assembly election day, voters are casting their ballots at a polling station set up at Hyehwa Art Center in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] As the 21st National Assembly election proceeds smoothly, various disturbances, including incidents of ballot paper damage, have occurred at some polling stations.

At around 9:30 a.m. that day, a man in his 40s was arrested by the police at a polling station in Jongno-gu, Seoul, after tearing up his ballot paper, claiming he had marked it incorrectly. If caught damaging a ballot paper, one can face imprisonment from one to ten years or a fine ranging from 5 million to 30 million won. The police arrested the man on the spot as he refused to cooperate with identity verification. Mr. A reportedly stated, "I couldn't control my anger because I marked the ballot incorrectly."

Earlier, at around 7:50 a.m., a man in his 60s was taken into custody by the police at a polling station in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, after causing a disturbance. The man, intoxicated, went to a polling station other than the one designated for him and caused a commotion, saying, "Why am I not allowed to vote?" Unlike early voting, voting on the actual election day is only allowed at the designated polling station.

Also, at around 7 a.m. in Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi Province, a woman in her 40s caused a disturbance when she was stopped from entering a temporary voting booth operated exclusively for individuals with fever or respiratory symptoms to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The woman caused a scene by trying to remove the mask worn by an election official and lying down on the floor. The police responded to a report from the election commission and arrested the woman on the spot.

There was also a case where a man was arrested after causing a disturbance by insisting on voting without an ID. At around 11:15 a.m. that day, a man in his 60s was arrested by the police at a polling station in Uijeongbu-si, Gyeonggi Province, after being stopped from voting due to not carrying an ID and causing a commotion by breaking a flowerpot inside the polling station.

The police declared the highest emergency level, "Gapho Emergency," mobilizing 100% of available personnel and strengthened security measures. A total of 70,138 police officers were deployed for managing polling and counting stations and escorting ballot boxes. In particular, 28,660 officers were assigned to 14,330 polling stations nationwide to conduct hourly patrols via 112 emergency calls, and in case of disturbances, they enter polling stations upon requests from the election commission to maintain order.