The parliamentary vote on the impeachment of President Yoon Seok-yeol is expected to take place on the evening of the 7th. The Democratic Party of Korea has also planned to pass the Kim Geon-hee Special Prosecutor Act together to bring the People Power Party members into the plenary session hall.
Cho Seung-rae, the chief spokesperson of the Democratic Party, said after an emergency supreme council meeting on the day, "The vote on President Yoon's impeachment bill is scheduled to take place around 7 p.m. on the 7th," adding, "We will consult with the Speaker's office."
Regarding the decision to hold the vote on the 7th instead of the initially expected 6th, Cho explained, "The public needs some time regarding the impeachment bill, and similarly, the People Power Party members should be given time to deliberate on the unconstitutional and illegal rebellion and coup, requiring political resolution." This is interpreted as an intention to give more time to consider and persuade the People Power Party members who have expressed opposition to the impeachment bill as the party line.
An official from the Speaker's office said, "The time for convening the plenary session must be decided through an agreement among the negotiating groups," adding, "Since the impeachment bill has already been reported and must be processed within 72 hours or it will be discarded, Speaker Woo Won-sik will negotiate with both ruling and opposition parties on whether to set the date on the 7th as requested by the Democratic Party."
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 5th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min
The plenary session on the 7th will also address the reapproval of the special prosecutor law concerning First Lady Kim Geon-hee.
No Jong-myeon, the Democratic Party's floor spokesperson, said, "The reapproval of the Kim Geon-hee special prosecutor law will also be pushed forward on the 7th." He added, "The reason for moving up what was originally planned for the 10th is because the People Power Party might boycott the impeachment vote entirely, so there is no suitable way to get them to come in, hence the reapproval. The special prosecutor law requires a two-thirds majority of the members present, so if the People Power Party does not participate, it will still pass."
Currently, within the People Power Party, there is consideration of boycotting the vote altogether to prevent a secret ballot vote that would enforce the party line opposing impeachment. If all 108 People Power Party members do not attend the plenary session, the impeachment will be rejected without a vote. This is because the presidential impeachment motion requires two-thirds of the total members, i.e., 200 votes in favor. The Democratic Party aims to bring People Power Party members into the plenary session through the Kim Geon-hee special prosecutor law, which will pass if the People Power Party members do not attend.
Meanwhile, the six opposition parties, including the Democratic Party, submitted the impeachment motion against President Yoon the day before and reported it to the plenary session early that morning. The impeachment motion must be voted on between 24 hours and 72 hours after being reported to the plenary session. The six opposition parties submitted the impeachment motion, arguing that President Yoon violated the principles of popular sovereignty and separation of powers, as well as the Constitution and laws, by declaring martial law on the 3rd.
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