Democratic Party blasts Seoul mayor's acquittal as 'politicization of judiciary,' calls for AI judges

The Democratic Party of Korea launched a fierce attack Monday over the appellate court's acquittal of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon on allegations that a third party paid for polling on his behalf, saying the "politicization of the judiciary is destroying public trust in the courts." Some party leaders went further, calling for the introduction of AI judges.

Democratic Party leader Kim Min-seok, speaking at a supreme council meeting at the National Assembly on Monday, said the ruling failed to hold accountable the person who benefited most from the arrangement. "There was someone who gave money and someone who received it, yet the person who gained the most has faced no responsibility whatsoever," Kim said.

Kim warned that allowing the ruling to stand would open the door to abuse. "If this ruling is upheld, third-party political funding schemes designed to circumvent the law will run rampant," he said, adding that "the risk of political brokers distorting public opinion and interfering in elections through manipulated polling has also grown."

"What concerns me even more is the politicization of the courts," Kim added. "The judiciary must take seriously the public criticism that it is making political judgments rather than legal ones. Which citizen would accept a reality where the verdict and sentencing in major cases swing dramatically depending on political considerations?"

Kim said the Democratic Party would continue to press for accountability. "The Democratic Party will thoroughly investigate the allegations surrounding Mayor Oh's ties to Myung Tae-kyun and the various suspected legal violations in Seoul city administration, and will pursue appropriate accountability to the end," he said.

Floor Leader Han Byung-do also weighed in, saying the ruling left too many questions unanswered. "There are far too many parts that are hard to accept," Han said. "One can debate how much weight to give Myung Tae-kyun's testimony. But it is incomprehensible that the court refused to recognize the significance of the objective evidence corroborating that testimony."

Han said the ruling effectively created a loophole in political funding law. "At this rate, third-party payments will become a free pass for circumventing the Political Funds Act," he said. "We urge the Supreme Court to rigorously review the assessment of evidence and application of legal principles and correct the errors in the appellate ruling. The Democratic Party will also move to clarify liability for third-party payments and pursue legislative reforms to strengthen the effectiveness of the Political Funds Act."

Supreme council member Choi Min-hee took the sharpest line, calling for AI judges to be introduced. "I strongly propose introducing AI judges — starting with politically sensitive cases," she said. "If a judge rules not according to legal principles but with other intentions, along partisan and political lines, or according to the chief justice's wishes, what reason is there for that judge to exist?"