Constitutional Court of Korea

“ Not only an act of a public official in violation of the provisions of the Constitution or statutes in the performance of his or her official duties, but also immorality concerning the performance of the office or the political incapability and the error in political decisionmaking, constitutes the grounds for impeachment. ”

“ The status and the responsibility of the state institutions as the servant for the entire citizenry is, in the area of election, realized in concrete terms as the 'obligation of the state institutions to maintain neutrality concerning elections.' The state institutions should serve the entire population, therefore, should act neutrally in the competition among the political parties or political factions. ”

“ Accordingly, the President should not only make every possible effort to protect and realize the Constitution, but also abide by the law and perform no act in violation of any of the valid law. Furthermore, the President should do all acts in order to implement the objective will of the legislator. The obligation of the executive branch of the government to respect and implement the law is equally applicable to the statutes that the executive branch deems unconstitutional. ”

“ Therefore, by the own nature of the national referendum, the 'confidence the public has in its representative' cannot be a subject matter for a national referendum and the decision of and the confidence in the representative under our Constitution may be performed and manifested solely through elections. ”

“ However, under the current Constitution that limits the presidential term to a single term, there is no means to hold the President directly responsible, even politically, let alone legally, toward the public and the President's faithfulness or unfaithfulness in performing his or her official duties may only be politically reflected favorably or unfavorably on the ruling party of which the President is a member. ”

“ Therefore, the question of in which relations the grounds for impeachment are legally examined is absolutely for the Constitutional Court to determine. The principle of due process is a legal principle that, before a decision is made by the governmental power, entitles a citizen who might be prejudiced by such a decision to an opportunity to express his or her opinion and thereby influence the process of the proceedings and the result thereof. ”

“ An electoral campaign in a democratic country is a free and open competition for multiple parties and candidates, with a goal to obtain political power, to seek a vote, by emphasizing their political activities and achievements during the past and by convincing the voters of the legitimacy of the policy they pursue. ”

“ Unlike other public officials who are prevented from any party activities, the President, as a member or an officer of a political party, may not only be involved with the internal decisionmaking process of the party and perform ordinary party activities, but also may participate in the party convention to express his or her political opinions and express support for the party of his or her membership. ”

“ Thus, if a public official is acting in the status of a public servant and taking advantage of the influence vested in the public duties, undue influence upon the election is found to be exercised, thus constituting a violation of the neutrality obligation concerning elections. ”

“ The citizen is not a mere object of the state authority but the subject of the process and only when a citizen may state his or her own opinions prior to a decision concerning his or her own right can an objective and fair procedure be guaranteed and the equality of status in the procedure between the parties realized. ”

“ Should a statement as such be made at a time where there is no temporally intimate relation to an election, there is only a remote or limited possibility for such statements to affect the outcome of the election. However, as the election approaches, the possibility for the President's statement supporting a particular political party to affect the outcome of the election increases, therefore the President bears during such time period, as a state institution, an obligation to restrain, as much as possible, any and all acts that may unfairly influence the election. ”