Former Labor Minister Kim Moon-soo leaves the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul, Friday, after being fined 500,000 won ($337) for violating the election law in the lead up to the 2025 presidential race. Yonhap
A court on Friday fined former presidential candidate Kim Moon-soo of the conservative People Power Party (PPP) 500,000 won ($337) for violating the election law in the lead up to last year's presidential race.
Kim was earlier indicted on charges of violating the election law by handing out his business card to five janitors at Suseo Station in southern Seoul in May as a preliminary candidate of the PPP, a month before the presidential election.
The Seoul Central District Court ruled that Kim's actions amounted to election campaigning and a violation of the election law, rejecting his argument that he had simply greeted the workers.
Under the Public Official Election Act, preliminary candidates are barred from handing out their business cards or soliciting support past the ticket gates of bus terminals, train stations and airports.
While prosecutors had sought a fine of 1 million won, the court noted the relatively minor nature of the offense. By law, those fined 1 million won or more for election law violations are barred from running for office for five years.
Kim, a former labor minister and a former governor of Gyeonggi Province, went on to win the PPP's nomination for the presidential election but ultimately lost to now President Lee Jae Myung of the Democratic Party of Korea.
Source: Korea Times News
