Wednesday's Seoul appeals ruling left the People Power Party facing possible repayment of 39.7 billion won in state campaign reimbursements if former President Yoon Suk Yeol's election-law conviction becomes final.
The Seoul High Court left in place an 18-month prison term suspended for three years. Yoon was the party’s candidate in the 2022 presidential election.
Under Article 264 of the Public Official Election Act, a final prison sentence for the election-law offense would invalidate Yoon’s election victory, even though the sentence is suspended. Article 265-2 would then require the party that nominated him to return its reimbursed campaign expenses.
The case centers on two denials Yoon made while campaigning. The court found that he had falsely denied meeting shaman Jeon Seong-bae with his wife, Kim Keon Hee. It also upheld the finding that he falsely denied introducing a lawyer to Yoon Woo-jin, a former head of the Yongsan Tax Office.
Yonhap News Agency reported that Yoon’s lawyers plan to appeal to the Supreme Court. The party’s repayment obligation depends on the conviction becoming final.
