The Lower House Faces Growing Vacancy Crisis in the Second Half... Will Ministerial Confirmation Hearings Be Affected?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] Although the first half of the 21st National Assembly's term ends on the 29th, the ruling and opposition parties are clashing over the distribution of the Chairperson of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, raising the possibility of a parliamentary leadership vacancy.

If the leadership vacancy occurs, most functions of the National Assembly will come to a halt. Among these, the current political focus is on how the confirmation hearings for high-ranking officials such as ministers will proceed. The National Assembly must hold confirmation hearings for candidates including Park Soon-ae, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education nominee; Kim Seung-hee, Minister of Health and Welfare nominee; Kim Seung-gyeom, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff nominee; and Kim Chang-gi, Commissioner of the National Tax Service nominee, whose hearing request was submitted on the 16th.

However, if the 29th passes, the relevant standing committees will no longer be able to conduct hearings for these candidates. According to current law, hearings cannot be held in the existing standing committees. While delays in organizing standing committees due to leadership formation negotiations are not uncommon, this is the first time confirmation hearings have been affected. This phenomenon has occurred because the launch of the new government and the start of the second half of the National Assembly coincide in timing.

Nevertheless, even if the standing committees are not formed, there is a way to hold confirmation hearings. According to Article 65-2, Paragraph 3 of the National Assembly Act, if a request for confirmation hearings for public office candidates is made before the standing committees are formed, the Special Committee on Confirmation Hearings can conduct the hearings. In this case, the establishment and composition of the Special Committee on Confirmation Hearings is proposed by the Speaker in consultation with the representatives of the negotiating parties.

In the current situation where the formation of standing committees and leadership is facing difficulties, both ruling and opposition parties are positively considering conducting confirmation hearings through the Special Committee on Confirmation Hearings. Some speculate that, considering the failure to form leadership, President Yoon Seok-yeol might appoint ministers directly without hearings as a 'scenario.' According to current law, if 20 days have passed since the confirmation hearing request was sent to the National Assembly, the President can appoint the ministers within the next ten days without the Assembly's consent.

However, bypassing the hearings does not seem to be gaining much support within the parties. Appointing ministers without hearings risks public backlash for avoiding scrutiny and neglecting the legislative branch. The Democratic Party also considers that confirmation hearings are an opportunity to check the government and ruling party and to demonstrate the opposition's presence, so holding hearings is advantageous.

Currently, the ruling and opposition parties are sharply divided over who will take the Chairperson of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, delaying not only the formation of standing committees but also the organization of the leadership. The Democratic Party is pressuring the People Power Party to also process the election of the Speaker of the National Assembly at the plenary session this afternoon to handle the supplementary budget bill. The Democratic Party had already selected Representative Kim Jin-pyo as their candidate for Speaker for the second half of the National Assembly at a party meeting on the 24th.

In response, the People Power Party considers the election of the Speaker to be directly linked to the leadership formation negotiations and is demanding a comprehensive agreement.