2026 Mass Enrollment Case: Evidence Under Fire

In first trial 21^st August in Seoul, defense challenges evidence in Family Federation mass political party enrollment case

The first trial in the politically sensitive case concerning the alleged organized enrollment of members of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification – FFWPU, in Korea often called Unificationism (통일교) – in the conservative People Power Party (PPP) began in Seoul on 21^st August 2026.

See also New Case: Claims of Political Mobilization

See also S Korea’s Special Prosecutors: A Political Tool?

The case involves former First Lady Kim Keon-hee (김건희), FFWPU leader Hak Ja Han (한학자), former FFWPU World Headquarters Director Yoon Yeong-ho (윤영호), former chief of staff Jeong Won-ju (정원주), and Jeon Seong-bae (전성배), known in South Korean media as the “Geonjin shaman”. All five defendants denied the charges at the opening hearing.

The proceedings are part of the broader series of investigations conducted by South Korea’s special prosecutor teams under the Lee Jae-myung (이재명) administration. JoongAng Ilbo (중앙일보), reporting on the first hearing, emphasized the defense’s argument that the alleged offense had simply not been proven.

The lawyers of Kim Keon-hee (김건희) told the Seoul Central District Court that there was no evidence showing that she had directly asked either Jeon Seong-bae (전성배) or Yoon Yeong-ho (윤영호) to support a candidate in the PPP leadership election, nor any telephone call, text message, or document in which she promised proportional-representation nominations.

According to the defense, the principal evidence consists of Yoon’s testimony and text messages exchanged between Yoon and Jeon.

The basic allegation, as summarized by JoongAng Ilbo (중앙일보), concerns events beginning in November 2022. Prosecutors allege that Kim and Jeon conspired to ask Yoon to organize FFWPU members to join the PPP. The special prosecutor’s theory is that Kim wanted a candidate supported by then-President Yoon Suk-yeol (윤석열) to win the PPP leadership election in March 2023 and that, in exchange for mobilizing Family Federation members, the organization was promised government support and other political benefits, including assistance concerning proportional-representation nominations.

KBS News provides more detail about the alleged scale of the membership campaign. According to the special prosecutor’s case, Yoon Yeong-ho, with the approval of Hak Ja Han and other FFWPU leaders, instructed local branches to enroll members in the PPP. More than 2,400 FFWPU members allegedly joined between November 2022 and January 2023.

KBS News also reports that the special prosecutor’s team initially sought support for former PPP lawmaker Kweon Seong-dong (권성동). After Kweon announced that he would not run, Jeon allegedly sent Yoon a message asking that members support Kim Gi-hyeon (김기현), who subsequently became the candidate supported by the Yoon Suk-yeol camp.

The prosecution maintains that this was part of a broader relationship between the religious organization and political power.

Hankook Ilbo (한국일보) quotes the special prosecutor’s team as arguing that the FFWPU had strongly supported Yoon Suk-yeol (윤석열) in the 2022 presidential election and subsequently intervened in the PPP leadership contest after allegedly receiving promises of proportional-representation seats and other benefits. Prosecutors characterize the alleged conduct as an attempt to distort democratic decision-making within a political party and to turn parliamentary positions into objects of political bargaining.

The special prosecutor’s team went further, arguing that FFWPU leaders used their religious authority to mobilize believers as political instruments. Hankook Ilbo (한국일보) reports the prosecution’s claim that members were placed in circumstances in which they had little choice but to join the party and support particular candidates, regardless of their own preferences. The prosecution therefore characterized the alleged conduct not merely as an individual violation of election-related legislation, but as something that potentially undermined the constitutional principles of separation of religion and politics and representative democracy.

The defense strongly disputes that interpretation. Kyunghyang Shinmun (경향신문) reports that Kim’s lawyers argued there was no evidence that she had promised either financial benefits or public positions to the FFWPU. They also stressed that there was no evidence demonstrating that the religious organization actually influenced the outcome of the 2023 leadership election. One particularly important defense argument, also reported by KBS News, was numerical: more than 2,400 new FFWPU members may have joined the PPP, but the difference between the first- and second-place candidates in the leadership election was approximately 140,000 votes. The defense therefore argued that it was difficult to regard the membership campaign as having had a meaningful impact on the election result.

The defendants also challenged the prosecution’s evidence on an individual basis. According to JoongAng Ilbo and Hankook Ilbo, Kim’s lawyers argued that even if she had mentioned proportional representation, she was not in a position to guarantee nominations and therefore could not have made a concrete or realistic promise of a benefit.

The lawyers of Hak Ja Han similarly rejected the allegation that she had approved or received a request to mobilize members. They attacked the testimony of Yoon Yeong-ho as lacking credibility, arguing that he was the principal source of the allegations against the FFWPU leadership.

See also How Reliable Is the Prosecution’s Key Witness?

OhmyNews (오마이뉴스) reports that the defense teams also raised a more fundamental legal argument. They contend that the relevant provision of the Political Parties Act, which prohibits providing or promising financial benefits or public positions in connection with party leadership elections, does not apply to the defendants in the manner alleged by the prosecution. The defense argues that Hak Ja Han and other FFWPU figures do not fall within the categories of candidates, campaign officials, voters, or observers specified by the provision.

The prosecution, however, says it has documentary and testimonial evidence beyond Yoon’s account. According to JoongAng Ilbo (중앙일보), prosecutors obtained PPP membership rolls showing that large numbers of FFWPU members joined before the leadership election. They also say that information concerning the membership drive was repeatedly reported to Yoon Yeong-ho and that they obtained testimony indicating that he instructed members to join and vote.

The first hearing therefore established a sharp divide between the prosecution’s broader characterization of the case as an instance of religious-political collusion and the defendants’ insistence that the central allegations lack direct evidence. Kyunghyang Shinmun (경향신문) notes that the court has decided to separate the proceedings involving Kim and Jeon from those involving Hak Ja Han, Yoon Yeong-ho, and Jeong Won-ju. Further proceedings concerning the latter three are scheduled for 28^th August.

The court plans to continue witness examinations through 18^th September and begin questioning the defendants themselves in October. The 21^st August hearing thus marks the beginning, rather than the resolution, of a courtroom battle over whether the alleged mass enrollment actually constituted an unlawful attempt to manipulate a political party – and, crucially, whether the prosecution can establish a direct evidentiary link between Kim Keon-hee and the alleged mobilization.

See also New Case: Claims of Political Mobilization

See also S Korea’s Special Prosecutors: A Political Tool?

Text: Knut Holdhus, editor

Featured image below: Disputed evidence in mass enrollment case. Illustration: ChatGPT, 21^st August 2026.

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