Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon acquitted on appeal in opinion poll payment case, raising expectations of next political move

The Seoul High Court acquitted Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon on appeal of charges of violating the Political Funds Act, overturning a lower ruling that would have cost him his elected post and marking a major legal victory for him.

The court acquitted him in a sentencing hearing at 2 p.m. on Friday.

The ruling significantly eased Oh’s legal troubles, which have long weighed on his career, and opened the door for his next political move.

The previous court had ruled that Oh would need to pay 10 million won ($7,500) in fines for requesting and having someone else pay for an opinion poll.

As he arrived at the courthouse on Friday, 14 lawmakers lined up outside the first-floor entrance to greet him. They included 13 People Power Party (PPP) lawmakers — Cho Eun-hee, Kwon Young-jin and Eom Tae-young, who are considered close allies of Oh; and Yoon Sang-hyun, Kim Seok-ki, Shin Sung-bum, Lee Man-hee, Kim Mi-ae, Park Soo-min, Suh Myung-ok, Lee Sang-hwi, Kim So-hee and Cho Jung-hun — as well as Reform Party lawmaker Lee Jun-seok.

Oh was indicted in December last year on charges of commissioning 10 opinion polls from political broker Myung Tae-kyun ahead of the Seoul mayoral by-election in 2021 and arranging for businessman Kim Han-jeong to cover the 33 million won cost.

The allegation surfaced after prosecutors investigating financial transactions between Myung and former PPP lawmaker Kim Young-sun expanded their probe to include allegations that ex-first lady Kim Keon Hee, the wife of ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol, interfered in political candidates’ nominations, and that a third party had paid for opinion polls commissioned by Oh.

The mayor’s legal team argued that prosecutors failed to follow proper legal procedures, such as obtaining a separate warrant, when they used evidence collected in an unrelated case involving former lawmaker Kim Young-sun.

The lower court fined Oh 10 million won, but the appeals court overturned the conviction. Audio recordings of Myung, submitted by the defense to challenge his credibility, played a decisive role.

In the recordings, Myung is heard saying, “Anyway, Oh Se-hoon doesn’t know [about this matter]” and “I’ll take care of it,” which cast doubt on his previous testimony that Oh had said businessman Kim Han-jeong would cover the costs.

Although a Supreme Court ruling remains in the case, Friday’s acquittal is widely seen as significantly reducing the legal uncertainty surrounding Oh. Had the appeals court upheld the sentence — and the Supreme Court subsequently affirmed it — he would have lost his mayoral post and been barred from running for public office, including the presidency, for five years.

“Regaining his reputation as a clean conservative, which he built by spearheading the so-called Oh Se-hoon laws in 2004, is [politically] significant for him,” a PPP official said, referring to revisions to the Political Funds Act, Public Official Election Act and Political Parties Act.

Park Sung-min, the head of the political consulting firm Min Consulting, noted that “with his reputation for stability, broad public familiarity as a five-term mayor and moderate political orientation, Oh already has considerable political strengths.”

With the Seoul High Court’s decision, “his path toward a future presidential bid has gained momentum,” Park added.

The ruling could also strengthen Oh’s standing within the conservative bloc, in which he has long been regarded as a leading figure among moderate and reform-minded conservatives.

Oh has advocated for uniting the center-right, including figures outside the PPP.

“Conservative unity that brings everyone together and creates synergy is essential,” he said at a parliamentary forum on housing on Oct. 7, calling for cooperation with independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon and Reform Party lawmaker Lee Jun-seok.

He has also maintained ties with ex-lawmaker Yoo Seong-min, including a dinner meeting on Aug. 3, as part of efforts to build a broader coalition.

Within the PPP, some lawmakers believe that Oh’s acquittal could even expand his influence.

“With his legal troubles largely behind him, [he] will gradually attract more support among lawmakers,” a senior PPP lawmaker said.

“He could emerge as the central figure of the anti-Jang Dong-hyeok faction,” a lawmaker representing the greater Seoul area said, referring to the PPP leader who is widely seen as a hard-line conservative. 

Oh’s acquittal could also reshape the struggle for influence within the conservative bloc, particularly as differences between Oh and Jang become more pronounced.

The two have repeatedly clashed over the party’s future direction. Oh called for Jang’s resignation after the expulsion of lawmaker Han was finalized on Jan. 29. At a parliamentary forum on future innovation on Aug. 25, he also criticized Jang’s push to reselect regional party chapter chiefs, describing it as “politics of subtraction and division.”

“There may not be any immediate, visible confrontation, but tensions between the so-called reform faction and the party leadership faction will intensify around next year’s party convention, with Oh at the center of the reform camp,” a senior lawmaker from Yeongnam said. Yeongnam refers to the Gyeongsang region and Busan, Daegu and Ulsan.

A Seoul Metropolitan Government official said that Oh had been confident that the appeals court would overturn the lower-court ruling.

“[He] now intends to concentrate on city administration going forward,” the official said. “It is true that his political room to maneuver has expanded considerably now that the legal troubles holding him back have largely been resolved.”

Update, Oct. 23, 2026: Added information about what the Seoul High Court’s ruling could mean for Oh Se-hoon’s career.

BY KIM BO-REUM [[email protected]]