Supreme Court Overturns Acquittal of Jang Yechang on 'General Election Poll Distortion' and Orders Retrial

Fine of 1.5 Million Won in First Trial
Acquittal in Second Trial... Overturned Again

Jang Yechang, Deputy Director of the Yeouido Institute affiliated with the People Power Party, who was put on trial for allegedly announcing false academic credentials and distorted poll results during his candidacy for the 22nd National Assembly election, has been acquitted of the charge related to false academic background. However, although he was found not guilty of distorting poll results in the second trial, the Supreme Court overturned this verdict and sent the case back for retrial, indicating a guilty finding.

The Supreme Court's Third Division (Presiding Justice Lee Sukyeon) on January 15 overturned the previous acquittal verdict for Jang, who was indicted for violating the Public Official Election Act, and remanded the case to the Busan High Court.

Deputy Director Jang was accused of announcing false information by registering as a candidate in the Busan Suyeong constituency for the 22nd general election in 2024 and listing his academic background as "dropped out of the Bachelor of Music program at Maastricht National Conservatory in the Netherlands." He was also put on trial for promoting himself by distorting poll results on April 8 of the same year during the election campaign.

In the poll at that time, when asked "Who do you think will be elected?" Jang ranked third with 27.2%. However, he cited the result that 85.7% of his supporters responded they would vote for him and distributed promotional materials containing the phrase "Ranked No. 1 in electability poll."

The first trial sentenced Deputy Director Jang to a fine of 1.5 million won. The first-instance court pointed out that Jang had actually attended and then dropped out of the music department at Zuyd University of Applied Sciences. The court also stated, "If only part of the poll wording is extracted or the size and placement are manipulated in a way that could mislead fair judgment, it can be considered distortion."

In contrast, the second trial found him not guilty. The appellate court stated, "Unlike formal academic credentials, there is no absolute obligation to specify the name of the school." Regarding the poll distortion charge, the court said, "Although the promotional wording may seem somewhat inappropriate, overall, it is insufficient to conclude that the wording alone would make people believe he ranked first in the electability poll."

On this day, the Supreme Court dismissed the prosecutor's appeal regarding the false academic background charge and confirmed the acquittal. However, regarding the poll distortion charge, the court noted, "At the very top of the card news-style image, the phrase 'Jang Yechang! Ranked No. 1 in electability poll!' was written in the largest font, so it is sufficient to conclude that ordinary voters would perceive that the defendant ranked first in the electability category of the poll." The court added, "The previous ruling misunderstood the legal meaning of 'publication of distorted poll results' under Article 96, Paragraph 1 of the Public Official Election Act."