Motion to Arrest Kang Sunwoo Over 100 Million Won Nomination Bribe Passes

164 Votes in Favor, 87 Against at Plenary Session
Kang Sunwoo: "100 Million Won Is Not Worth Staking My Life On"

The motion to consent to the arrest of independent lawmaker Kang Sunwoo, against whom an arrest warrant was sought on charges of receiving a 100 million won nomination bribe, was passed at the National Assembly on the 24th.

The motion to arrest Assemblyman Kang, which was tabled at the National Assembly plenary session that day, was passed in a secret ballot of 263 lawmakers from both the ruling and opposition parties, with 164 in favor and 87 against. Three lawmakers abstained, and nine ballots were invalid.

The broader opposition bloc parties, the People Power Party (105 seats) and the Reform Party (3 seats), were seen as highly likely to vote unanimously in favor, and the Cho Kuk Innovation Party (12 seats), which has been raising the issue of so-called "cash-for-nomination," also adopted a party line recommending a vote in favor. The Democratic Party, by contrast, decided not to set an official party line and to leave the vote to individual lawmakers' discretion.

Kang Seonwoo, an independent lawmaker for whom an arrest warrant was sought on charges of receiving a 100 million won nomination donation ahead of the 2022 local elections, is entering the plenary chamber of the National Assembly on the 24th to make a personal statement after a motion to consent to his arrest was placed on the agenda. Yonhap News Agency

Kang is accused of receiving 100 million won in return for a nomination from former Seoul Metropolitan Council member Kim Kyung while serving as a member of the Democratic Party’s Seoul Metropolitan Party Nomination Management Committee at a hotel in Seoul on January 7, 2022, ahead of the local elections. After Kang expressed her opinion in the nomination process, former councilor Kim was given an uncontested nomination and was subsequently elected.

Ahead of the vote, Kang made a personal statement, arguing, "I returned a total of 322 million won over five occasions," and countered, "Yet they say I demanded 100 million won. One hundred million won has no value for which I would stake my political life or my life itself."

She went on to say, "In January 2022, ahead of the presidential election, my local aide said they would introduce a good person, and that is when I first met former councilor Kim. The gift that was handed over as a matter of form was forgotten due to a careless habit," adding, "On April 20, 2022, at a meeting of the Seoul Metropolitan Party Nomination Management Committee, when I said we should find a young female candidate and run a wonderful campaign, I immediately received a strong protest call from former councilor Kim, and only then did I realize that the gift was money."

Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho, explaining the need for her arrest, stated, "Although Assemblyman Kang denies the charges, the charges are substantiated by the statements of the provider and witnesses, the way the 100 million won was used, related recordings, and the resulting nomination outcome," and added, "In view of the seriousness of the case and concerns about flight or destruction of evidence, there are grounds that make detention necessary."