A trial for Lee Man-hee, founder of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, is scheduled to begin on July 24 at the Seoul Central District Court. Lee is charged with forcing at least 56,472 church members to join the People Power Party (PPP) between July 2021 and January 2024, which investigators say was intended to affect outcomes of PPP internal elections, including the 2022 presidential primary and the 2024 general election primaries. The case was brought by a joint police-prosecution task force, which indicted Lee on June 29 and applied charges related to the earliest alleged forced memberships because the statute of limitations was nearing. Separately, investigators question a close aide, Kim Pyung-hwa, as part of the same broader probe. Kim is being questioned to determine whether Lee and former secretary-general Go Dong-an embezzled church funds and lobbied political figures. Kim is described as Lee’s primary assistant and as overseeing administrative duties at the church’s general assembly. Lee is currently under arrest, and the July 24 hearing will be the trial’s first step in addressing the forced membership allegations.