Singer JK Kim Dong-wook calls for re-election, special probe over ballot shortage

Singer JK Kim Dong-wook has sharply criticized the ballot shortage that marred the June 3 local elections.

In a social media post Sunday, Kim wrote that if he were president, he would immediately launch a fraud investigation and call for a re-election. "Why the hesitation?" he wrote, adding that early voting should be abolished, ballots cast in transparent boxes and counting done by hand. "Wouldn't that be clean and simple?"

He went on to say that investigating the National Election Commission should not be so difficult. "Let's just get this done cleanly. Other countries watching this would think South Korea is a developing nation," he wrote, adding that people were no longer as easily swayed as before and urging authorities to move quickly.

Kim had also posted on June 3, when the ballot shortage first emerged in Seoul and other parts of the country, calling it something "you wouldn't even see in a developing country." He said the commission's apology left him speechless, as no one appeared willing to take responsibility, and argued the National Election Commission should face a special prosecutor investigation.

He also expressed sympathy for voters who had gone to the polls on Monday only to encounter what he called a "disastrous and surreal situation." "The South Korea I know — the one we all know — was never this kind of country," he wrote. "This is exactly what I mean by regression."

JK Kim Dong-wook is an ethnic Korean who emigrated to Canada and obtained citizenship there. He holds no voting rights in South Korea and is exempt from mandatory military service. He has consistently weighed in on political issues since former President Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law on Dec. 3, and most recently drew attention during the controversy over Starbucks' "May 18 Tank Day" marketing campaign, saying he would visit the chain if he wanted to and calling it a matter of personal choice.

Meanwhile, police have launched a full investigation into the ballot shortage during the June 3 local elections. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's wide-area crime investigation unit began questioning Monday a representative of a conservative civic group that filed a complaint against National Election Commission Chairman Noh Tae-ak and others on charges including dereliction of duty. Police said the questioning would be the first step in examining whether the commission followed proper ballot distribution standards and how decisions were made at the time. Interviews with election workers and other polling station staff involved in the incident are also expected to take place soon.

“레미콘 1만1000대 멈췄다”…수도권 오늘부터 레미콘 운송 중단

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