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Jang Ye-chan, deputy director of the People Power Party’s Yeouido Institute, resigned on March 26 after a retrial on remand fined him 1,500,000 KRW (about $1,125) for distorting poll results. Under the Public Official Election Act, if the ruling is finalized, he will be barred from seeking elected office for five years.
Jang had previously told the party he would resign his deputy director post if he received a sentence that restricted his eligibility to run. The Busan High Court’s 1st Criminal Division (Presiding Judge Kim Ju-ho), which handled the retrial on remand, imposed a fine of 1,500,000 KRW (about $1,125). Under the law, fines of 1,000,000 KRW (about $750) or more carry a five-year ban on running for public office.
After the verdict, Jang wrote on Facebook that while he could endlessly insist he had been treated unfairly, as a politician he must respect the judiciary. He said he would step back temporarily from the national political stage but intended to continue serving the party and the conservative camp through broadcasting and other roles he can take on.
The People Power Party later said in a press release that it had accepted Jang’s resignation, which he submitted for personal reasons.
Jang was indicted on charges that he distorted poll results during the April 2024 general election. In a survey asking “Who do you think will be elected?” he polled 27.2%, placing third. He nonetheless circulated promotional materials claiming first place in perceived electability, citing a separate finding that 85.7% of his supporters said they would vote for him.
The trial court found Jang guilty of both poll manipulation and falsifying academic credentials and sentenced him to a fine of 1,500,000 KRW (about $1,125). The appellate court overturned that decision, acquitting him on both charges. The Supreme Court later upheld the acquittal on the academic-credentials count but remanded the poll-manipulation charge to a lower court with instructions consistent with a finding of guilt, leading to the current retrial on remand.
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