Democratic Party pushes to dissolve election watchdog through constitutional reform

The Democratic Party of Korea said Friday it will pursue the dissolution of the National Election Commission through constitutional reform, along with measures to make the NEC chairperson a full-time position and subject the agency to audits by the Board of Audit and Inspection, amid controversy over the commission's mismanagement of the June 3 local elections.

Rep. Song Ki-heon, who heads the party's Task Force to Protect Citizens' Voting Rights and Reform the NEC, announced the plan after a plenary meeting of the task force at the National Assembly that day. He said the conclusions were reached "after gathering expert opinions and conducting internal deliberations."

"We will dissolve the National Election Commission through constitutional amendment," Song said. He added that the party intends to change the NEC's name and composition so that it becomes a constitutional body that broadly guarantees citizens' right to participate in elections.

The task force also decided to pursue making the NEC chairperson a full-time post, expanding the number of full-time commissioners from one to three, and holding confirmation hearings for the secretary-general. Under the plan, each of the three full-time commissioners would oversee a distinct area — ballot and voting management, investigations and enforcement, or organizational operations — to strengthen internal oversight.

Currently, only one of the NEC's nine commissioners holds a full-time position. The chairperson, elected from among the commissioners, is typically a Supreme Court justice serving in a non-standing capacity.

Song explained the rationale for expanding the number of full-time commissioners. "The way for the NEC to function as a proper oversight body is to increase the number of full-time commissioners so they can take charge of, evaluate, and supervise the commission," he said. "If we elect commissioners who can be fully dedicated and work on-site, I think we can filter out lax and irresponsible management."

Song went on to say the reforms must "fix the way staff have been carrying out their duties on autopilot" and create "a system in which the commission genuinely monitors and supervises the executive organization."

Task force lawmakers also said they would use the shift to a full-time chairperson to address "the structural problem of the NEC being unable to supervise the work of its secretariat."

Rep. Lee Hae-sik said the ballot shortage during the recent elections stemmed from the fact that "a key decision — reducing the ballot printing ratio — was handled not through a formal NEC resolution but through delegated authority granted to the secretary-general." He said the party would change the system so that important matters are handled by the chairperson, by making the position full-time and increasing the number of commissioners.

The task force also decided to pursue legislation mandating audits of the NEC through constitutional reform. Song said the party would "push for Board of Audit and Inspection audits of the NEC to secure transparency in the commission's overall fiscal operations, which have in effect been off-limits until now." He added that the party would codify the NEC's internal audit committee — currently operating under NEC rules — as an independent deliberative body with decision-making authority, and require that audit results be reported to the National Assembly.

Song also said that changing the constitutional provisions governing the Board of Audit and Inspection's functions would be necessary before the board could audit the NEC, and that "our party's basic position is that the Board of Audit and Inspection itself should be transferred to the National Assembly." Additional reform proposals included establishing a new body to evaluate election administration and requiring the NEC to produce a white paper and submit it to the Assembly.

"We plan to advance both the legislative amendments and the constitutional amendment as quickly as possible," Song said.

Meanwhile, the People Power Party renewed pressure on Wi Cheol-hwan, the acting NEC chairperson, demanding he "decide his future by the time of the second institutional briefing on July 1."

Rep. Seo Beom-su, the PPP's floor whip on the National Assembly's special committee investigating the ballot shortage, made the demand at a floor strategy meeting at the Assembly on Friday. He warned that otherwise Wi would "go down in history as the first NEC commissioner to face an impeachment motion."

Seo claimed the NEC had been exposed as "comprehensively irresponsible and incompetent," and alleged that "at the center of it all was acting chair Wi — a 'dining companion' appointed by President Lee Jae Myung."