National Assembly to Hold Plenary Session at 5 PM Today for Impeachment Vote
People Power Party Still Opposes Impeachment as Party Line
200 Lawmakers Needed to Approve Yoon's Suspension
On the 7th, the National Assembly will vote on the impeachment motion against President Yoon Seok-yeol, who declared martial law and caused a crisis that disrupted the constitutional order. If two-thirds of the total members of the National Assembly, that is 200 members, vote in favor, his duties will be suspended. If the motion is rejected, political and social turmoil is expected to continue for a long time.
Given the current situation, the likelihood of the impeachment motion passing is low. Although Han Dong-hoon, leader of the People Power Party, mentioned the need for the prompt suspension of President Yoon's duties, the People Power Party, which holds 108 seats, opposes impeachment as the party line. Currently, only two members of the People Power Party, Ahn Cheol-soo and Cho Kyung-tae, have publicly expressed support for impeachment.
The Key to Impeachment Lies in the Hands of the People Power Party
Earlier, Leader Han held an emergency Supreme Council meeting the day before and stated, "We judge that the prompt suspension of President Yoon Seok-yeol's execution of duties is necessary to protect the Republic of Korea and its people." He reversed the party line opposing the existing impeachment motion against President Yoon, citing the mobilization of intelligence agencies to arrest major politicians and others, and the failure to take personnel actions against responsible military officials as grounds. The Supreme Council meeting was not originally scheduled but was urgently announced at 7:24 PM and held. The meeting was initially planned for 8:40 PM but actually started at 9:30 PM. It is reported that a heated debate occurred during the preliminary meeting before the main meeting regarding the verification of facts about the content Leader Han was to disclose.
Afterwards, Leader Han met with President Yoon. At the party caucus, he reportedly said, "I did not hear anything from President Yoon that would overturn the judgment that immediate suspension of duties is necessary," and added, "Now is the time to make a responsible decision." However, a significant number of People Power Party lawmakers, mainly from the pro-Yoon faction, oppose this. Some even voiced that Leader Han should be held responsible. The core argument is that if impeachment proceeds in this state, it would simply hand over power to Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party. While there were mistakes, at least time is needed to secure the minimum conditions to reverse the situation.
For now, the People Power Party held a 12-hour party caucus the day before and decided to maintain the party line opposing impeachment against President Yoon. Shin Dong-wook, the party's chief floor spokesperson, told reporters after an emergency caucus at the National Assembly that day, when asked if there was any change in the party line opposing the impeachment motion against President Yoon, "There was no talk of changing the party line. You can understand that it is being maintained."
During the caucus, Representative Yoon Sang-hyun met with reporters and said, "I wrote down all the members' positions while observing, and there was never any support for impeachment," adding, "There is no change in the trend." Mayors affiliated with the People Power Party, such as Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo, also urged President Yoon to avoid impeachment and called for the formation of an emergency national unity cabinet and stepping back from frontline politics. The party's standing advisory group requested that President Yoon explain the details of the martial law incident and that the party remain united until the suspicions are resolved.
Handonghun, the leader of the People Power Party, is listening to the remarks of Floor Leader Choo Kyung-ho at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 5th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min
Floor leader Choo Kyung-ho, party secretary-general Park Jeong-ha, and Representative Joo Jin-woo visited the Yongsan Presidential Office the day before to convey the contents of the party caucus regarding the 'martial law incident.' Shin, the chief floor spokesperson, said, "We conveyed everything without omission," and introduced that President Yoon responded, "I understand well. I will listen carefully to the members' intentions and consider them." The People Power Party plans to hold another caucus at 9 AM to discuss the National Assembly plenary session's response to the impeachment motion against President Yoon and the special investigation law on First Lady Kim Geon-hee.
Opposition Appeals for Participation in Impeachment
The opposition parties, including the Democratic Party and the Innovation Party, as well as independent lawmakers, have voiced a unified stance on impeachment and appealed for the participation of ruling party lawmakers. This is because only eight members' participation is needed for the motion to pass. The opposition particularly expressed concern about the possibility of a second declaration of martial law, fearing that President Yoon might still mobilize the military or others to change the situation.
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is conversing with lawmakers at the plenary session held in the National Assembly main chamber on the 5th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min
The opposition, encouraged by Leader Han's change of position the day before, considered advancing the impeachment vote, but due to significant opposition within the People Power Party, they decided to proceed with the vote as originally planned today. The Democratic Party and others have stated that they will give People Power Party lawmakers time to deliberate.
Impeachment Vote Scheduled for 5 PM on the 7th
All political timers are currently set for 5 PM on this day. The plenary session plans to vote on President Yoon's impeachment and the special investigation law on Kim Geon-hee. Depending on the vote results, the wheels of history are expected to find their path.
The success or failure of the impeachment currently depends on whether six People Power Party lawmakers, excluding Representatives Cho and Ahn, will join.
If the impeachment motion passes, President Yoon, who is the head of diplomacy, defense, and administration, will be immediately suspended from duty, and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo will assume the role of acting president. Procedurally, once the National Assembly passes the impeachment motion, the impeachment resolution is sent to the Constitutional Court. Upon delivery, President Yoon's duties are suspended. The Constitutional Court also begins the impeachment trial process. The impeachment trial case is handled by a full bench of all justices, and the presiding justice is assigned electronically.
The Constitutional Court is expected to rule on the impeachment case by June next year at the latest. According to Article 38 of the Constitutional Court Act, the court must deliver a verdict within 180 days from the date it receives the case. However, the actual trial period is expected to be shorter. In the cases of former Presidents Roh Moo-hyun and Park Geun-hye, the Constitutional Court took 63 days and 91 days, respectively, to reach a decision.
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