Council of Europe - Venice Commission

KOREA - Public Offical Election Act

Download file

Article 266

(Restriction on Attending to Public Affairs due to Election Offense)

(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of other Acts, the person who is sentenced to imprisonment with prison labor on account of committing the crimes
(excluding any crime involving the intra-party competition) provided for in Articles 230 through 234, 237 through 255, 256 (1) through (3), 257
through 259 (excluding crimes related to the intra-party competition) and the crimes provided for in Article 49 of the Political Funds Act shall not
be assigned or appointed to any of the following offices for ten years after the non-execution of the sentence becomes final, or the execution of
the sentence is terminated or exempted; a person who is sentenced to a suspension of sentence execution, for ten years after the sentence becomes
final; a person who is sentenced to a fine of not less than one million won, for five years after the sentence becomes final, and a person, who is already assigned or appointed to any of the following offices, shall resign from such office:

1. An office falling under any subparagraph of Article 53 (1) (including the president of each association and full-time employees in cases
under Article 53 (1) 5, and teachers, such as the president, dean, professor, associate professor, assistant professor or full-time instructor under Article 14 (1) and (2) of the Higher Education Act, in cases under Article 53 (1) 1);
2. An office falling under Article 60 (1) 6 through 8;
3. An officer or employee of the institution and organization falling under Article 3 (1) 12 or 13 of the Public Service Ethics Act;
4. A teacher under Article 53 or 53-2 of the Private School Act;
5. A member of the Korea Communications Standards Commission.

(2) No person falling under any of the following subparagraphs shall be a candidate for a re-election (including a special election, for which reasons
for holding an election have become definite, as an elected person has resigned before a final and conclusive judgment after his/her indictment),
for which reasons for holding an election have become definite due to the invalidation of election:

1. Any person whose election is invalidated under Article 263 or 265 (including a person who has resigned before a final and conclusive judgment after his/her indictment); or
2. Any person who is not elected (including a person who intends to be a candidate), for whom a punishment equivalent to the invalidation of
election is finalized, due to crimes falling under Article 263 or 265, which are committed by the election campaign manager, etc.

(3) No National Assembly member, local council member or head of a local government, who has resigned his/her office during his/her term of office,
so as to run for other elections for public officials (including elections for educational officials or superintendents of education), shall become a candidate for a special election, for which reasons for holding an election have become definite, due to his/her resignation.