[Law & Story] Incumbent Prosecutor Runs for General Election

Kim Sangmin and Park Daebeom Declare Candidacy for General Election
No Way to Block Sitting Prosecutors from Running, Citing Supreme Court Precedent on Hwang Unha
Filtering Out Politically Biased Prosecutors Is Up to the Voters

Seokjin Choi, Legal Affairs Reporter

In the 15th National Assembly election held in April 1996, former Prosecutor General Kim Do-eon, who had retired just a few months earlier, ran as a candidate for the New Korea Party and was elected as a member of the National Assembly. This was a case that broke the precedent where prosecutors general did not hold any public office other than Minister of Justice after retirement.

Subsequently, in January 1997, the National Assembly amended the Prosecutors' Office Act to include a provision stating that "the Prosecutor General shall not be appointed to a public office or become a founding member or member of a political party within two years from the date of retirement." However, then-Prosecutor General Kim Ki-soo and senior prosecutors who were candidates for the next Prosecutor General filed a constitutional complaint, and the Constitutional Court ruled the provision unconstitutional, stating it was "an excessive restriction on the freedom of political association and suffrage, which hold a superior status."

Currently, controversy is arising as a sitting chief prosecutor has declared candidacy for the general election without having his resignation processed. This is Chief Prosecutor Kim Sang-min, who caused a stir after it was revealed at last year's year-end National Assembly audit that he sent text messages to acquaintances in his hometown saying, "I am a Changwon person to the bone." Park Dae-beom, head of the Masan branch, is under investigation for alleged inappropriate contact with outsiders related to the general election.

In addition to these two, former Seoul High Prosecutor General Lee Sung-yoon and former Suwon District Prosecutor Shin Sung-sik, who were identified as representative pro-government prosecutors in the previous administration, have expressed their intention to run for the general election while maintaining their status as prosecutors. Lee is currently on trial for obstructing investigations related to Kim Hak-ui’s illegal deportation, and Shin is on trial for involvement in false reporting related to former Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon.

Among former prosecutors, Yang Bu-nam, former Busan High Prosecutor General and chairman of the Democratic Party’s legal committee, led the investigation team on the Kangwon Land recruitment corruption case in 2018. During the investigation of People Power Party lawmaker Kwon Seong-dong, he opposed the investigation directives of then-Prosecutor General Moon Moo-il, claiming they were external pressure on the investigation. Lawmaker Kwon was ultimately acquitted by the Supreme Court.

The entry of prosecutors into the National Assembly itself is not problematic. What is strange about prosecutors, who have studied law and worked in legal fields for a long time, entering the legislative body that enacts laws? Among current lawmakers, there are several former prosecutors, including People Power Party members Kwon Seong-dong, Kim Do-eup, Kim Woong, Yoo Sang-beom, and Jeong Jeom-sik, as well as Democratic Party members Kim Hoe-jae, So Byung-chul, Song Ki-heon, Jo Eung-cheon, and Baek Hye-ryun.

The problem arises when prosecutors reveal their political bias before leaving office or prepare to run for the general election while still in office, actions that raise doubts about their political neutrality. It goes without saying that compromising fairness in handling cases for the purpose of later entering politics through party nomination is unacceptable.

Of course, prosecutors are human and may have political parties they support and political convictions. However, the moment such convictions are expressed externally rather than remaining internal, it inevitably violates Article 65 of the State Public Officials Act, which prohibits political activities by public officials, and Article 3 of the Prosecutors’ Ethics Code, which prohibits involvement in political activities.

However, at present, there is no way to prevent sitting prosecutors from running in the general election.

In 2021, the Supreme Court ruled in the invalidation lawsuit of Democratic Party lawmaker Hwang Un-ha, who was elected while still a police officer, that "if a public official submits a resignation letter within the legally prescribed period to become a candidate for public office, it is deemed that the official has resigned at the time of submission, regardless of whether the resignation is accepted," allowing public officials whose resignation has not been accepted to join political parties and register as candidates.

Ultimately, it is the individual prosecutor’s responsibility not to engage in behavior that raises doubts about political neutrality until they have officially left office, and it is the voters’ responsibility to filter out candidates nominated for their loyalty to the regime in elections.