Newtamsa's Lee Jong-won Suspected of Inducing 'Double Proxy Voting' Among Viewers During Live Broadcast… Even Ordered Chat Blocking

During the Newtamsa live broadcast, viewers confessed to fraudulent poll responses themselves. One viewer stated that despite being a woman in her 40s from Seoul, she falsely responded as a woman in her 20s from Gangwon. There were also cases of residents of Daejeon responding as being from the Gangwon region, or residents of Siheung, Gyeonggi, lying about their age to respond as being in their 20s. Cases even emerged of a 67-year-old individual residing in Seoul responding as being in their 20s from Daegu, raising suspicions of systematic false responses.

Host Lee Jong-won encouraged viewers to select specific age groups and recommended responses from particular regions when participating in polls. He induced responses from specific age groups like those in their 20s, stating, "Those in their 40s, 50s, and 60s might be cut off, so please be quick-witted. Be sensible." Furthermore, he recommended responses from the Daegu, Gyeongbuk, and Gangwon regions, and there were signs that these instructions were re-circulated and shared among viewers through the chat window.

One viewer revealed that despite being a party member, she responded to a general public opinion poll using her husband's mobile phone. The viewer admitted, "I am a party member. My husband's phone rang, so I answered it," confirming that she used her spouse's mobile phone instead of her own for the survey. It was confirmed that these proxy responses occurred via calls from specific originating numbers (e.g., 02-2102-22009).

Some viewers shared proxy responses using family members' mobile phones as a positive experience. One viewer proudly stated, "In the morning, I told him to pick up whatever phone calls came in, and he was quick-witted and picked it up and told me. That's how it worked," revealing that she answered a poll call for her husband. This attitude, similar to successful party member voting, showed them regarding proxy responses as an achievement.

The host raised legal and ethical issues regarding inappropriate vote inducement, mentioning a case where a party member wife responded to a general public opinion poll received on her husband's phone. He criticized, "Actually, that's almost like a proxy vote. But at that level, they have no sense of guilt," pointing out that such actions effectively constitute proxy voting. He also emphasized the problematic nature of current actions by referencing past ethics committee rulings.

During the broadcast, cases were introduced where party members participated in general public opinion polls multiple times despite already being party members. One viewer residing in the Daejeon area stated that he received a call from 02-2109-2009 around 12:53 PM and responded to the poll. He revealed that he participated in the general public opinion poll in addition to already completing the party member vote, bringing the issue of party members voting multiple times to the surface.

Host Lee Jong-won interpreted the situation of party members double voting as possible, where they "cast one party member vote with the phone registered as a party member, and then receive a call on another phone for a general public opinion poll." He explained that many people use multiple lines, such as for work and personal use, and that double voting can occur in this manner, mentioning that surveys can be received on a personal mobile phone separate from the one used for party registration.

Lee Jong-won pointed out the moral issue of double voting, stating that if one has already cast a vote as a party member, they should not respond to a general public opinion poll. He said, "You should probably hang up. In fact, if I have already cast a vote as a party member, yes," suggesting a moral standard that voters who have exercised their right to vote once should refrain from participating in additional polls.

One viewer confessed to participating in a poll using her mother's mobile phone. She explained, "I didn't receive it on my phone; I was holding my mother's phone. When a 02 call came for my mom, I quickly picked it up." She described this method of directly voting herself as proxy voting. This is a clear case of proxy voting where a non-party member used a family member's mobile phone to respond to a poll, and the host positively presented this on the broadcast, fueling the controversy.

When a viewer pointed out the issue of proxy voting during the broadcast, host Lee Jong-won reached the peak of the controversy by ordering the forced blocking of that viewer's chat. Lee Jong-won stated, "It's perfectly fine to help your parents vote. Yes, that's why I said nonsense, like proxy voting... just a moment. Get rid of that 'proxy voting' bullshit immediately." He dismissed the criticism of proxy voting as 'nonsense.' Through this instruction, he silenced the opinions of viewers who raised legal and ethical issues about proxy voting, fostering public opinion that criticized this as a 'state of complete moral paralysis'.