Special Counsel Raids NEC over Suspected Improper Payments

On November 2, a special counsel team conducted raids at the National Election Commission (NEC) headquarters in Gwacheon, South Korea, over allegations that NEC commissioners received improper stipends totaling 905.8 million won (approximately US$677,000). The 65-member special counsel team, comprising four prosecutors, targeted the NEC chair and secretary general's offices during the search.

The NEC commissioners were accused of being unlawfully paid monthly stipends, ostensibly for assisting in ensuring free and fair elections. Despite the Board of Audit and Inspection and the National Assembly raising concerns about the lack of justification for these payments, the stipends continued to be granted. Some of the funds, totaling 905.8 million won, were allegedly diverted from other purposes, according to the special counsel team.

The stipends began at 171.5 million won in 2020 and continued, with the annual total exceeding the 100 million won threshold set under a law that punishes acts causing losses to the state treasury. The special counsel team was established in September to investigate the ballot shortages on the day of the June 3 local elections and other suspected irregularities involving the NEC.