Special counsel team raids election watchdog in probe into ballot shortages

A special counsel team on Thursday raided the national election watchdog and other local election commissions as part of its probe into shortages of ballots during the June 3 local elections.

It marked the first raid by special counsel Lee Tae-han's team after its launch on Sept. 7 to investigate the shortages that sparked major public outcry after some voters were forced to turn back without casting their votes.

Lee's team sent investigators to the National Election Commission and eight other locations for the search and seizure to seize internal records from the watchdog's offices.

The special counsel team is tasked with investigating the election watchdog's management of ballot papers during the local elections and other allegations of misconduct.