PPP lawmaker pushes bill requiring all election commissioners to be on duty on election day

People Power Party lawmaker Lee Dal-hee introduced a bill Tuesday that would require all members of election management committees at every level to remain on duty from the start of election day through the close of vote counting, aiming to strengthen accountability and ensure a swift response to any incidents during the voting and tallying process.

Election day concentrates the most critical tasks in the electoral process — managing polling and counting operations and responding to incidents — making prompt judgment and responsible decision-making by committee members essential to ensuring fairness and public trust.

Data submitted to Lee's office by the National Election Commission showed that the NEC chairperson and non-standing commissioners averaged just 2.05 days per month at commission offices between 2022 and July 24 this year.

The picture at city and provincial election commissions was little better. Excluding standing commissioners, members of city and provincial election management committees logged an average of between 0.81 and 1.59 days per month at their offices from 2022 through July 24 this year — roughly one day a month across most regions.

Similar gaps appeared in office attendance on actual election days. In Busan, Incheon, Daejeon, Gangwon Province and North Gyeongsang Province, not a single committee member was present at commission offices on either last year's presidential election day or the June 3 local elections.

The bill would mandate that all members of election management committees at every level remain on duty from the opening of polls on election day through the completion of vote counting.

"Election day is the most important day, when each citizen's precious vote translates into an actual election result, so the commissioners responsible for managing elections must be able to share situational awareness and make necessary judgments and decisions without delay," Lee said. "Through this amendment, we will ensure that commissioners at all levels fulfill their responsibilities right up to the moment the election ends, building a fairer and more trusted election management system."