Special Counsel Raids Election Watchdog in 5 Billion Won Bidding Probe
Investigators searched the National Election Commission and four other sites over suspected collusion in contracts for polling-station supplies used in South Korea’s recent elections.
A special counsel investigating South Korea’s election administration raided the National Election Commission and four other locations Wednesday after uncovering suspected collusion in contracts worth about 5 billion won, or roughly $3.7 million, for polling-station supplies.
The team led by special counsel Lee Tae-han said searches began at about 8 a.m. at the commission’s headquarters and election-supply companies in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, and Daegu. The warrants cited suspected breach of trust and obstruction of bidding. About 30 personnel took part, including six forensic investigators from the special counsel’s office and three police forensic investigators.
Investigators said the newly identified allegations concern contracts to produce polling-station supply sets for last year’s presidential election and the June local elections. The team says it found indications that the election commission may have been improperly connected to a particular company. The case was detected during the broader investigation rather than transferred from another agency, according to the special counsel. No conclusion of criminal liability has been announced, and the allegations remain under investigation.
The searches widen a probe that had already examined suspected irregularities in procurement of early-voting ballot boxes. The special counsel previously took over that matter from a joint police-prosecution investigation team and questioned the head of a ballot-box manufacturer last month as a suspect in alleged bid obstruction.
That company executive, a former election commission official, is suspected of arranging for a nominal competing bidder to participate in a tender for ballot boxes used in the June 3 local elections. The company ultimately won the contract.
Quality problems later emerged in the delivered equipment. Of 13,376 translucent ballot boxes supplied for local early voting, 790 were recalled because parts had been installed incorrectly or lock mechanisms would not close. Delivery was also delayed beyond the original contractual deadline after multiple defects were found.
The election commission has additionally faced questions over 103 contracts awarded to three companies linked to the former official, the official’s spouse and their son. Those agreements were worth a combined 17.5 billion won, with 90 reportedly awarded without open competitive bidding. Investigators are examining whether preferential treatment was given and whether commission officials maintained improper ties with suppliers.
The special counsel plans to analyze seized records before determining responsibility among commission personnel and company representatives. The expanding inquiry places procurement controls at the election watchdog under scrutiny as investigators assess whether weaknesses in contracting contributed to defective equipment and potentially favored vendors.