The Supreme Court's ruling on Nam-pyo Hong, the special mayor of Changwon, Gyeongnam, who was put on trial on charges of bribing a candidate ahead of the 2022 nationwide local elections, is scheduled for early next month.
According to the legal community on the 24th, the Supreme Court's third division (presiding justice Lee Sukyeon) will deliver its verdict on the appeal trial of Mayor Hong's violation of the Public Official Election Act at around 11:15 a.m. on April 3.
This comes three and a half months after Mayor Hong was sentenced to forfeiture of his election in the appellate court.
Hong Nampyo, mayor of Changwon Special City in Gyeongnam, expresses his intention to appeal after the appellate court ruling on charges of violating the Public Official Election Act. Photo by Lee Seryung
Mayor Hong was indicted on charges of conspiring with his campaign's chief election strategist, Mr. A, ahead of the June 2022 local elections, to promise a public office to Mr. B, who intended to run in the People Power Party's Changwon mayoral primary, in exchange for joining the campaign.
He was indicted on November 30, 2022, and was acquitted in the first trial on February 8, 2024, about a year and two months later. After the prosecution appealed, he was sentenced to six months in prison with one year of probation in the second trial on December 18 of the same year, about nine months later.
The first trial court acknowledged that Mr. A attempted to offer a public office to Mr. B, but judged it to be an independent act aimed at boosting the candidacy of political newcomer Mayor Hong, given Mr. A's extensive experience in election campaigns, and acquitted Mayor Hong.
However, the appellate court found that although Mr. B had not definitively expressed his intention to run, it was enough for third parties, such as those around Mr. B, to recognize the possibility. The court also determined that Mayor Hong and Mr. A were motivated to prevent Mr. B from becoming a candidate.
Furthermore, the court ruled that the specific promise of the position of 'economic special advisor' could not be seen as an independent act unrelated to the candidate Mayor Hong's intentions at the time, and that Mayor Hong had received and accepted relevant reports from Mr. A.
Afterward, Mayor Hong appealed, stating, "I never proposed or promised a public office, and I explicitly told them never to make such promises. That is all," and argued, "The conviction was based on evidence selectively presented as part of a deliberate plan by the complainant, and on statements from the complainant and one or two people in the surrounding interest group whose credibility is questionable."
According to the Public Official Election Act, if an elected public official is confirmed to have violated the Act and is sentenced to imprisonment or a fine of 1 million won or more, their election is invalidated.
If the appellate court's ruling of election forfeiture is confirmed, the 8th popularly elected Changwon city government will be operated under the authority of the first deputy mayor as acting mayor.
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