Kim Jae-won proposes using party headquarters as collateral to return 39.7 billion won in Yoon Suk-yeol's campaign costs

Kim Jae-won, a Supreme Council member of the People Power Party, said on the 5th that if former President Yoon Suk-yeol's election-rigging conviction is finalized, the party should put up its headquarters as collateral and launch a fundraising drive to return the 39.7 billion won ($27 million) in campaign costs. On the 4th, the Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 2-1 (Chief Judge Baek Seung-yeop) upheld the lower court's sentence of one year and six months in prison, suspended for three years, for former President Yoon, who was indicted on charges of violating the Public Official Election Act. (Suspension means the sentence is waived as long as the offender stays out of trouble for three years.) If a fine of 1 million won or more is finalized, the People Power Party must return to the National Election Commission the 39.7 billion won in campaign subsidies it received during the presidential election.

In an interview with MBC's "Cho Seung-won's News High Kick" on the 5th, Kim Jae-won said of the 39.7 billion won in campaign costs, "It is frankly an amount difficult for our party to shoulder." He said, "If he is convicted and the ruling is finalized, we have an obligation to return the government subsidies received during the presidential election," adding, "We are not contesting the court's ruling." He went on to say, "Not only the national headquarters, but also the provincial chapter offices in regional cities have been around a long time," and "those offices should be put up as collateral and we should also run a fundraising drive — the 39.7 billion won must be paid."

The host also asked how the party's real estate could be used. Kim acknowledged that "the national headquarters is a rather small building," but explained the value of the provincial chapter offices. "Buildings constructed on the outskirts long ago are now all downtown, given the party's long history," he said. He also noted that in the past, "the party has put up regional offices as collateral and taken out loans during general or presidential elections."

Behind this proposal lies the party's financial structure. According to the People Power Party's asset disclosure as of June 28, its total assets stand at approximately 138.4 billion won, of which cash and deposits account for about 19 billion won and land and buildings about 91.6 billion won. As most of the party's assets consist of land and buildings, it would be difficult to raise the 39.7 billion won immediately in cash — a fact that appears to underpin Kim's proposal.