Rep. Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, gets out of a vehicle on his way to a second appeals trial on his election law violation case at the Seoul High Court, Wednesday. Yonhap

Rep. Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), has called for a constitutional review of election law provisions, fueling speculation that he is deliberately delaying trials related to him ahead of a potential early presidential election.

In November, a Seoul court sentenced Lee to one year in prison, suspended for two years, on charges of violating the election law during the previous presidential campaign.

He was found guilty of making false statements during a parliamentary audit of the Gyeonggi Provincial Government in October 2021 while serving as governor.

He was also accused of lying about not knowing Kim Moon-ki, the former head of the development division at Seongnam Development Corp., which was involved in a corruption-ridden construction project in Seongnam during his time as the city's mayor. Lee has appealed the verdict to the Seoul Central District Court.

Lee is considered the top contender for the next presidential election, according to polls. However, if any prison sentence is finalized, he will be stripped of his parliamentary seat and barred from running for public office for the next 10 years. If he receives a fine exceeding 1 million won ($760), the ban would last for the next five years. In both cases, he would be unable to run for the next presidential election.

Lee's legal team requested a constitutional review of the election law provisions on Tuesday, saying criminalizing "publishing false information infringes freedom of political expression." If the court accepts the request, the trial will be suspended until the Constitutional Court concludes its constitutional review.

Ruling People Power Party (PPP) lawmakers accused Lee of intentionally delaying the court proceedings so he could run in a potential snap election. Last month, the Seoul High Court said it would issue its final ruling on Feb. 26 and decide in March at the earliest whether to uphold or reject the lower court's decision.

Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, second from right, floor leader of the ruling People Power Party, speaks during an emergency meeting calling for the passage of economic and livelihood-related bills at the National Assembly in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap

Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, floor leader of the PPP, alleged that Lee is trying to delay his trial indefinitely.

"Lee's action reflects his intent to delay his trial indefinitely and cover up his crimes by running in an early presidential election, if it does take place," he wrote on Facebook, Wednesday.

"It is common sense to be punished if you commit a crime. However, Lee wants to avoid punishment by abolishing the law. Before shouting for ‘basic income' and ‘basic society' welfare plan, please equip yourself with basic morality."

Another PPP lawmaker, Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon, pointed out that Lee has long sought to postpone his trials.

"Lee has used all kinds of tricks to delay his trial, such as deliberately not receiving the receipt of the lawsuit records and delaying the appointment of a lawyer. But this time, he clearly revealed his dark intention to remove any barrier leading up to an early presidential election by delaying the appeals court's ruling," Kim said.

The DPK chief's alleged attempt to delay his trial also drew backlash from other liberal politicians who are not considered pro-Lee.

"The right path is to trust law, court judgment, and the public," former Prime Minister Kim Boo-gyum, who served as the co-chair of the DPK's campaign committee in the April 10 general elections, said in a radio interview.

However, the DPK denied Lee's strategy of seeking delays. "Constitutional Court's review on unconstitutionality is assigned to a separate case and is conducted separately, so it does not and cannot delay the proceedings of the main trial," Rep. Lee Geon-tae, legal representative of the DPK, said.

"The trial will end quickly without any delay," Lee told reporters on his way to attend a second appeals trial on his election law violation case, Wednesday.