KB News Desk
President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday appointed Lee Tae-han, a non-standing commissioner of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission, as the special counsel to lead the investigation into the National Election Commission, according to Cheong Wa Dae.
Lee Tae-han, a prosecutor-turned-attorney, will lead a 165-member team investigating a wide range of allegations against South Korea’s election authorities. The investigation is allowed to continue for up to 150 days.
Lee Tae-han was one of six candidates recommended by the Korean Bar Association and the Association of Korean Law Schools.
The special counsel probe will revolve around the NEC’s alleged mismanagement of the June 3 local elections, including ballot shortages at polling stations. Voters were forced to wait, some for hours in extreme cases, until ballots were delivered, while others returned home without casting their votes.
The team will also look into NEC’s alleged manipulation of the vote count in past elections, in part through the seizure of NEC servers, as well as an alleged cover-up of officials’ overseas trips and nepotism practices.
Lee Tae-han told reporters after his appointment was announced that the special counsel team will “find the truth without any political considerations” and “stick to the law and principles.”
