South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has called for a comprehensive investigation into a ballot shortage that disrupted recent local elections, affecting eligible voters' ability to cast their votes. In a statement on social media, he expressed deep regret and announced that prosecutors and police would be involved in the inquiry. The head of the National Election Commission (NEC), which oversaw the elections, resigned following the incident. Protests erupted outside a ballot-counting site in Seoul, where demonstrators demanded a re-run of the elections. President Lee criticized the NEC's response as insufficient and requested parliament to conduct a fact-finding probe to prevent similar occurrences in the future. Opposition leader Jang Dong-hyeok of the People Power Party visited the protests and called for a joint audit with Lee's Democratic Party, noting that the ballot shortages were particularly severe in conservative-leaning areas. Despite the Democratic Party's success in major local races, the opposition retained the mayoralty in Seoul, with incumbent Oh Se-hoon winning re-election. The NEC reported that 50 polling stations ran out of ballots, and voting was temporarily halted at 22 locations due to supply delays, with significant issues reported in the conservative Songpa district.