Oh Sehoon's Office Criticizes Kim Minseok's "99.99% By-Election" Remark as Undermining Judicial Independence

"Not Merely a Political Statement... A New Form of Pressure on the Judiciary"

"The Seoul Mayor's Office Cannot Be Swayed by the Democratic Party's Calculations"

In response to Kim Minseok, leader of the Democratic Party, stating that there is a "99.99% chance of a by-election for Seoul Mayor in 2027," Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon's office criticized the remark, saying, "This is not merely a political statement, but an act that shakes the independence of the judiciary," and described it as "a new form of pressure on the court to demand their desired outcome."

Seoul Mayor Oh Sehoon is announcing the G3 Seoul Plan on the 10th at Seoul City Hall in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Hyunmin Kim

Lee Jonghyeon, Special Advisor for Public Affairs Communication for Seoul City, said in a statement on the 10th that "The appeal trial for the Seoul Mayor has only just begun, yet Kim effectively decided the outcome in advance by claiming a '99.99% chance of a by-election.' Is he, in effect, issuing instructions to the court about what verdict to deliver?"

Lee went on to state, "Amid ongoing instability in the real estate market and difficulties in people's livelihoods, the leader of the ruling party irresponsibly treats a mayoral by-election as a foregone conclusion, thereby destabilizing the steady governance of Seoul. The heavy responsibility of Seoul city administration, which cares for the lives of 10 million citizens, cannot be swayed by the Democratic Party's election calculations."

He added, "The Seoul Mayor is fully committed to people's livelihoods and city administration, and all Seoul City officials are working for citizens without wavering. The office of the Seoul Mayor is not something that can be determined by a page in the Democratic Party leader's notebook."

He concluded, "We call on Kim Minseok to immediately stop making outrageous remarks and applying pressure on the judiciary, and to apologize for his frivolous conduct that also insults the choice of Seoul citizens."

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