Lee Gwon-jae's Campaign Says "False Slander in Cho Yong-ho Supporters' Group Chat"... Considering Legal Action

Lee Gwon-jae Osan Mayoral Candidate’s Camp

“Distortion of Segyo Terminal E-sports Pledge”

Request for Investigation into Spread of False Information

Cho Yong-ho’s Side: "Unaware of the Existence of the Group Chat"

The election campaign of Lee Gwon-jae, candidate for Mayor of Osan from the People Power Party, announced plans for legal action, stating that false posts distorting Lee's campaign pledges were being circulated in a group chat of supporters of Cho Yong-ho, the Democratic Party candidate.

Group chat screen capture. Provided by candidate Kwonjae Lee

On May 19, the campaign headquarters of candidate Lee Gwon-jae issued a statement, saying, “Distorted posts, which are not based on facts, were circulated in the so-called ‘group chat of 1,000 people’ supporting candidate Cho Yong-ho,” and urged, “Immediately cease such acts of spreading false negative propaganda that undermine the atmosphere of a policy-driven election.”

According to the campaign, on May 15, a post titled “Candidate Lee Gwon-jae plans to build a gaming room on land purchased with 51.5 billion won of taxpayers’ money” appeared in the group chat.

The campaign argued, “The content falsely portrays the plan as if a simple ‘neighborhood gaming room’ is being established on the Segyo Terminal site purchased by the Osan municipal government during the 8th popular election, which may mislead citizens,” and asserted, “This is a malicious false slander intended to depict Lee as an irresponsible politician who wastes taxpayers’ money.”

The campaign further explained, “In reality, candidate Lee’s pledge is to revive the Segyo Terminal development plan and create a complex hub by establishing an e-sports stadium, an AI-based training center, and a multi-purpose cultural facility, thereby attracting youth and increased foot traffic.”

The campaign also emphasized, “The site in question was left neglected for over a decade under previous Democratic city administrations before the 8th popular election,” and added, “It was only after the 8th popularly-elected Osan administration, which reduced the budget through fiscal austerity, purchased and acquired the site from LH that full-scale development became possible—this is one of the achievements of the current administration.”

In particular, the campaign pointed out, “It has been confirmed that the false slanderous post shared in the group chat was originally posted on social media by the head of a certain media outlet, Mr. A, and then shared by a group chat member,” and claimed, “Mr. A has been distributing numerous posts on social media that distort and criticize both Lee Gwon-jae’s achievements as the 8th popularly-elected mayor and his campaign pledges.”

The campaign stated, “This issue constitutes organized and intentional slander of the candidate during the election period,” adding, “Candidate Cho Yong-ho must clearly answer to the public whether he was directly or indirectly involved in these actions.”

The statement continued, “Elections should be judged based on policies and vision, not lies and negative campaigning,” and further emphasized, “We are considering all possible measures, including legal action and reporting to investigative authorities, regarding the dissemination of false information and potential defamation.”

In response, a representative from Cho Yong-ho’s Osan mayoral campaign office for the Democratic Party stated, “We do not know whether this so-called ‘group chat of 1,000 people’ claimed by Lee Gwon-jae’s side even exists, nor who its administrator is,” and added, “It is necessary to first verify the facts regarding the claims made by Lee Gwon-jae’s campaign.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.