The Seoul High Court on Tuesday granted a request from Democratic Party (DP) presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung to delay the first hearing of his retrial on election law violations, rescheduling it from May 15 to June 18 — 15 days after the June 3 snap presidential election. The court stated that the decision was necessary to “ensure fairness,” noting that proceeding before the vote could compromise Lee’s constitutional right to campaign on equal footing with his rivals.

The delay follows the Supreme Court’s ruling last week overturning Lee’s acquittal and remanding the case with instructions consistent with a guilty verdict. If convicted and fined at least 1 million won, Lee could be disqualified from holding office. His legal team on Wednesday cited constitutional protections for candidates and the Public Official Election Act, which states that candidates “shall not be arrested or detained unless he or she is caught while committing a crime… from the time the candidate completes registration until the ballot counting is finished.”