Yoon Suk Yeol faces potential election invalidation in second trial

A special prosecutor has requested that the Seoul High Court uphold a first-instance sentence for former President Yoon Suk Yeol, which includes a prison term and the invalidation of his election. During the final hearing for the appeal, the prosecution asked the court to dismiss Yoon’s appeal and maintain the original sentence of 1 year and 6 months in prison, suspended for 3 years.

Yoon faces charges of violating the Public Official Election Act by making false statements during his presidential campaign. Specifically, he is accused of falsely claiming he never met shamanic figure Jeon Seong-bae with his wife, Kim Keon-hee, and denying involvement in introducing a lawyer to Yoon Woo-jin, the brother of a former prosecutor. The prosecution argued that these falsehoods were significant enough to influence voter judgment and the overall election outcome.

If the sentence is finalized, Yoon’s election will be declared void. Under South Korean law, if a candidate is sentenced to a fine of 1 million won or more for election crimes, their victory is invalidated. Furthermore, the People Power Party would be required to return approximately 39.7 billion won in election expenses previously reimbursed by the National Election Commission.