(LEAD) Seoul mayor-trial

▲ In this file photo, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon arrives at the Seoul High Court in southern Seoul on Sept. 4, 2026, to attend his trial on charges of violating the Political Funds Act. (Yonhap)

(ATTN: UPDATES throughout with ruling; CHANGES headline, lead)

SEOUL, Oct. 23 (Yonhap) -- An appeals court on Friday acquitted Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon in a high-stakes political funds case stemming from opinion polls linked to the 2021 mayoral by-election.

The Seoul High Court overturned a lower court's conviction of Oh on charges of violating the Political Funds Act, which had put him at risk of losing his mayoral post.

Oh had been indicted on charges of having a political supporter make payments totaling 33 million won (US$24,900) for opinion polls he received on 10 occasions from self-proclaimed power broker Myung Tae-kyun ahead of the 2021 election.

Under the Political Funds Act, elected officials are stripped of their seats if they receive a finalized fine of 1 million won or heavier punishment for improper acceptance of political funds.

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