Members of the Democratic Party of Korea reacted to the Supreme Court's decision to overturn the ruling in the case of presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung for violating the Public Official Election Act with terms such as “judicial coup” and “Supreme Court interference in the election.”
Democratic Party of Korea Supreme Committee member Lee Eon-joo said on 1st via Facebook, “In a democratic republic, the formal logic or complex interpretations of the judiciary cannot surpass the will of the sovereign people and the changes of the times,” adding, “Going against the majority will of the sovereign is equivalent to a ‘judicial coup.’”
Former Supreme Committee member Jeon Hyun-hee of the same party said after the Supreme Court's ruling, “The Supreme Court, which has conducted an unprecedented speedy trial of the candidate Lee Jae-myung's case, ultimately responded to the manipulated investigation and coercive prosecution of the Yoon Suk-yeol regime,” expressing “strong regret over the unprecedented involvement of the Supreme Court in the election.”
Kim Yong-min, the floor deputy leader, criticized, “Now is the time for the people's sovereignty and the time for the people's choice, not the time for lawyers,” stating, “The Supreme Court has infringed upon the people's sovereignty with an unripe legal doctrine. In only 9 days, the authority to decide the fate of the Republic of Korea was not given to the Supreme Court by the people.”
Jeong Cheong-rae, the chair of the Judiciary Committee, said, “The president is not elected by the Supreme Court. The president is elected by the people,” while Kim Seong-hwan, the head of the Democratic Party of Korea's election response committee, stated, “I will steadfastly stand with candidate Lee Jae-myung until the end.”
On this day, the Supreme Court overturned the ruling on the candidate's violation of the Public Official Election Act with a guilty verdict. In this case, the candidate faced a guilty verdict in the first trial and a not guilty verdict in the second trial, but due to the Supreme Court's overturning, he will undergo a retrial at the Seoul High Court.