State auditor sends key audit results of election watchdog to special prosecutor

The Korea Times - Sep 23, 2026

The Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) said Wednesday it has sent part of the results of its inspection into the state election watchdog to the special prosecutor team investigating ballot shortages in June's local elections. The BAI conducted a financial audit of the National Election Commission (NEC) from July 6 to Aug. 28 to look into whether there were any irregularities that could have contributed to the unprecedented shortages of voting papers in the June 3 elections. The results have not yet been made public. The data handed over to the independent counsel team involved six cases related to budget execution for major elections, including interference with bidding, unfair private contracts, and wrongful inspections, as they were deemed to require a swift investigation, the BAI said. The BAI did not disclose further details. The agency explained that it decided to share the data ahead of the official audit announcement because the special prosecutor team has only 150 days to investigate the case and related materials should be provided in time.

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Seoul yet to decide on joint Olympic bid with North Jeolla

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