South Korean lawmaker fined 10 million won, faces possible loss of seat

On Friday, the Gwangju District Court sentenced Democratic Party representative Jeong Jun-ho to a 10 million-won fine and a 50 million-won forfeiture after convicting him of breaching election and political-fund statutes. Prosecutors said Jeong took 50 million won from a construction-company chief around July 2023, promising to hire the chief’s child as his legislative assistant if elected. He was further accused of making illegal payments to campaign workers who ran a telephone-campaign centre between November 2023 and February 2024 ahead of the party’s primary.

South Korean law mandates that any lawmaker sentenced to a fine of at least 1 million won for such violations must be stripped of their National Assembly seat once the judgment is final. The case was revived after a February court dismissal was overturned due to a prosecutorial error. If upheld, Jeong could lose his seat, potentially affecting the ruling party’s parliamentary strength.