SEOUL: Over 6,000 people protested on Friday night at a vote counting centre in Seoul over a shortage of ballot papers, demanding a rerun after voting in local elections was disrupted.

Hours earlier, the head of the national election commission stepped down to take responsibility for the shortage of ballot papers in some districts.

Roh Tae-ak said there could be no excuse for a failure that had harmed the public and its commitment to the democratic process, and understandably created distrust.

The crowd gathered at the SK Olympic Handball Stadium, where votes were counted from Wednesday’s elections to pick mayors, provincial governors, county officers and members of local assemblies.

Livestreams showed people chanting and bearing placards with the slogan Re-run!”, along with national flags.

Ballot papers ran out at 50 of the total 14,300 polling stations and had to be restocked, while voting was disrupted at 22 polling stations due to delays in receiving supplies, an NEC official later told a briefing.

At some locations, voters waited for hours into the night after polls officially closed. At one polling station in Seoul’s Songpa district, an angry crowd set up a blockade and prevented officials taking ballot boxes to the stadium after voting ended.

Published in Dawn, June 6th, 2026