Chong Won-o, the Democratic Party of Korea's Seoul mayoral candidate, was reported to police on allegations that he posted promotional material containing poll results that did not meet the publication standards under the Public Official Election Act.
The Committee for Measures on Ordinary People's Livelihoods (Seominwi) said on the 4th that it filed a complaint with the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency accusing the candidate of violating the Public Official Election Act and abusing authority, saying, "With the bottom portion of the promotional material cut off, it failed to include key items, leaving voters entirely unable to verify the objectivity, credibility, and fairness of the poll results."
Earlier, on the 1st, the candidate posted on his Facebook page promotional material containing poll results comparing him with People Power Party Seoul mayoral candidate Oh Se-hoon, saying, "We will repay the citizens with a Seoul where the citizens are the owners." However, the material listed only the approval ratings, the timing of the release of the results, and the candidates' names, while excluding the lower section containing key information such as the poll sponsor, polling institute, sample size, response rate, and more.
Under Article 108 of the Public Official Election Act and Article 18 of the Election Polling Standards, when publishing election poll results, a fine is imposed if the following are not included together: ▲ poll sponsor ▲ election polling institute ▲ survey area ▲ survey dates ▲ those surveyed ▲ survey method ▲ sample size ▲ respondent selection method ▲ response rate ▲ sampling error, and so on.
As the controversy grew, the candidate deleted the original post and uploaded a new one later that same afternoon.
Meanwhile, the candidate was previously reported on suspicion of producing and distributing promotional material that arbitrarily processed poll results during the Democratic Party of Korea's Seoul mayoral primary. People Power Party lawmaker Kim Jae-seop filed a complaint with the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency on the 7th of last month, saying, "This is a clear violation of the Public Official Election Act that undermines the fairness of elections, the foundation of democracy. It is a grave offense that warrants not only invalidation of the election but also the severe judgment of disqualification from running for office."