Han Byung-do (left), floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, and Jung Chung-rae, floor leader of the People Power Party. [Photo = Yonhap News]

The agreement signed on July 21st by People Power Party floor leader Jung Chung-rae and Democratic Party of Korea floor leader Han Byung-do, titled the "Act on the Appointment of a Special Prosecutor to Investigate Election Management Failures, Such as the Ballot Shortage in the 9th Local Elections," is a deceptive political collusion that ignores the public, and it cannot resolve the issue of election fraud.

This agreement is a political compromise that directly tramples on the solemn demands of the people and makes resolving the problem even more difficult. Furthermore, we condemn People Power Party floor leader Jung Chung-rae for abandoning his duties as the leader of the opposition party.

In particular, the tragic death of an Incheon Election Commission official in his 50s on July 20th starkly highlights the severity of this situation. Although the police claim there were no signs of foul play, this incident, occurring at the height of the ballot shortage controversy and suspicions of election fraud, cannot be dismissed as a simple personal tragedy.

This case, in which a suicide note was reportedly discovered at the scene, must be included in the scope of the special counsel's investigation, and a thorough investigation to uncover the truth is essential.

On July 16, 2026 (local time), U.S. President Donald Trump officially raised the issue of fraud in the 2020 U.S. presidential election again during a prime-time address to the nation from the White House.

He emphasized that it was "the biggest election fraud in U.S. history" and claimed, citing newly declassified documents, that China had illegally obtained the files of 220 million U.S. voters during the 2020 election period.

President Trump pointed to the vulnerabilities of voting machines, foreign interference, and the issue of non-citizen voting, declaring, "We will not watch a stolen election again." This serves as a powerful example of the importance of fair elections and the necessity of uncovering the truth behind election fraud in the Republic of Korea as well.

We refute the contents of the July 21st agreement between the ruling and opposition floor leaders as follows.

First, Articles 1 and 4 of the agreement limit the title of the Special Counsel Act to "the 9th Local Election ballot shortage, etc." and specify the goal of processing it in the July extraordinary session of the National Assembly.

This is an intentional narrowing of the investigation's scope. The ballot shortage is merely the tip of the iceberg; the investigation must comprehensively examine systemic election fraud suspicions, including mismanagement of early voting, problems with ballot box transport and storage, and computerized vote counting, yet these were not clearly included. The scope, scale, and duration of the investigation, which have been deferred to future discussions, are highly likely to be distorted and reduced through political horse-trading.

Second, the special prosecutor recommendation method in Article 2 of the agreement is inherently advantageous to the Lee Jae-myung regime and the Democratic Party. It outlines the formation of a public recommendation committee (3 members each from negotiating groups, totaling 6) and stipulates that two candidates will be recommended to the President by mutual agreement between the ruling and opposition parties after receiving three recommendations each from the Korean Bar Association and the Korean Association of Law Schools.

This completely ignores the public outcry for a direct recommendation by the opposition party. It is virtually impossible to appoint an independent and rigorous special prosecutor without the consent of the Democratic Party; in the end, it is a structure where the Democratic Party and the President will appoint their desired candidate under the guise of "ruling-opposition consensus."

Third, while the entire agreement repeatedly emphasizes "ruling-opposition consensus," it fails to specify any concrete investigative authority or guarantees of independence. This is merely a political delay tactic intended to appease public opinion and avoid a substantive inquiry through a superficial special counsel.

This act directly tramples on the desperate cries of the people who have been enduring rain and heat for nearly 50 days at Olympic Park, calling for "election nullification, re-voting, and same-day counting."

Fourth, People Power Party floor leader Jung Chung-rae bears the greatest responsibility. He ignored the demands of the People Power Party’s supporters and the public, leading to a flawed agreement with the Democratic Party. This is clear evidence that the People Power Party has abandoned its responsibilities as an opposition party and its will to fight.

People Power Party floor leader Jung Chung-rae. [Photo = Yonhap News]

Accordingly, our organization, JEONG-GYO-MO, demands the following:

First, People Power Party floor leader Jung Chung-rae must resign immediately and voluntarily. He must take political and moral responsibility for betraying the will of the people and leading this flawed agreement.

Second, nullify the agreement in its entirety and renegotiate the Special Counsel Act using a method of direct recommendation by the opposition party.

Third, the scope of the special counsel's investigation must explicitly include all suspicions of fraud in the 9th Local Elections and all elections since 2020, as well as the death of the Incheon Election Commission official, and grant it strong investigative powers (search and seizure, warrant requests, investigation of related cases, etc.) equivalent to the special counsel for insurrection previously proposed by the Democratic Party.

Fourth, the leadership of the People Power Party must take the lead in uncovering the truth of fair elections based on the spirit of guaranteeing the right to vote under Article 24 of the Constitution, rather than prioritizing political survival.

Fair elections, the foundation of South Korean democracy, must not be sacrificed for political deal-making. As the suspicions of fraud in the 2020 U.S. presidential election are receiving renewed international attention following President Trump's recent speech, South Korea cannot be an exception.

We, the professors of JEONG-GYO-MO, will continue to watch this situation to the end alongside the people and solemnly declare that we will fight using every legal means available until the truth is uncovered.

July 22, 2026

Academic Association for Social Justice (JEONG-GYO-MO)