1st court verdict for ex-DP leader on election law violation charges due in Oct.

A final court hearing for former opposition leader Lee Jae-myung on an alleged election law violation will take place in September, with a verdict expected around the following month, officials said Friday.

The final hearing session regarding Lee's alleged election law violation will be held on Sept. 6 following the interrogation of Lee in August and other processes, according to the Seoul Central District Court.

Lee is accused of making false statements during the presidential campaign in 2021 by denying knowing Kim Moon-ki, a deceased suspect and a Seongnam city employee who played a key role in the Daejang-dong development project in violation of the election law.

Lee also allegedly made a false claim in 2021 that the special favor in the land development project in Seongnam's Baekhyeon-dong district was given at the request of the land ministry, also in violation of the law.

Given due legal procedures, a court verdict on the allegations is expected to be delivered around October, which will mark the first court ruling on allegations against Lee.

Lee is standing trial on breach of trust and other corruption charges connected to those development projects in the city of Seongnam, south of Seoul, arising from his term as mayor in the city years ago.

Lee ran for president as the Democratic Party (DP) candidate in March 2022 but was narrowly defeated by then main opposition People Power Party candidate Yoon Suk Yeol.

After serving as the DP's chairman, Lee resigned on Monday in a preparatory step to seek another term as party leader in a national convention set for August.

Under current rules, a party chair must resign from his leadership position to be eligible as a candidate.