Democratic Party’s Strong Action: Disqualification of Park Sung-hyun Amidst Election Scandal

Translation result

On the 5th, the Democratic Party recommended strong measures, including disqualifying Park Seong-hyun, a pre-candidate for mayor of Gwangyang in South Jeolla Province, after allegations of illegal campaign activity emerged.

In a press release, the party said its Supreme Council found serious problems with Park’s qualifications and urged the Jeonnam (South Jeolla) Election Commission to take tough action, including removing him from the primary ballot.

That same day, the Jeonnam commission filed criminal complaints with police against 15 people — including a pre-candidate and campaign aides — alleging they operated illegal phone banks for the local primary and attempted to pay campaign workers. The commission said the pre-candidate is believed to be Park.

On the 3rd, the commission’s regional investigation team found 13 campaign workers using mobile phones to conduct primary campaign activities. The workers denied receiving payments, but investigators uncovered sign-in sheets and cash envelopes labeled with recipients’ names.

The Jeonnam commission then seized volunteer lists that included the campaign-worker roster, roughly 8,600 copies of party membership application forms, voter preference analysis data, and a phone database containing about 54,000 citizens’ names. Those materials were forwarded to police as evidence alongside the complaints.