People Power Party Dissolution Petition Surpasses 170,000 in One Day

Only the dissolution petition of a political party is not under the jurisdiction of the National Assembly

On the 10th, a petition demanding the dissolution of the People Power Party posted on the National Assembly's electronic petition board surpassed 170,000 endorsements in just one day. If a petition exceeds 50,000 endorsements, it is referred to the relevant standing committee.

As of 3:25 PM that day, the petition titled "Request for Dissolution Judgment of the People Power Party" had already received more than 173,000 endorsements. This means it approached 200,000 endorsements within just 24 hours since the petition was made public the previous day.

On the 7th, the day of the vote on the impeachment motion against President Yoon Suk-yeol, citizens in front of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, watched with somber expressions as the People Power Party lawmakers left the chamber without participating in the vote. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

The petitioner claimed, "The organized boycott by members of the People Power Party during the vote on the impeachment motion against President Yoon Seok-yeol on the 7th clearly violates the Constitution and laws."

They continued, "This act undermines the basic duties of National Assembly members and the fundamental democratic order as a political party," and pointed out, "If the impeachment motion submitted by the opposition party did not align with the People Power Party's party line, they should have attended the plenary session and confidently cast opposing votes."

Furthermore, they added, "This is an act that directly violates Article 1 of the Constitution, the principle of popular sovereignty, and disqualifies them as representatives of the people." The petitioner also argued that, besides the three People Power Party members who participated in the vote?Ahn Cheol-soo, Kim Sang-wook, and Kim Ye-ji?the remaining members should be disciplined according to the National Assembly Act.

A petition demanding the dissolution of the People Power Party. Screenshot of the National Assembly electronic petition website.

Earlier, a petition titled "Request for the enactment of a special investigation law for the impeachment of President Yoon Seok-yeol and investigation of the crime of rebellion," posted on the 4th, just one day after President Yoon declared martial law, also approached 300,000 endorsements in only five days.

Generally, a public petition is referred to the relevant standing committee if it receives more than 50,000 endorsements. This petition is expected to be forwarded to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. However, in the case of a dissolution judgment of a political party, under current law, the process involves the government’s State Council deliberation rather than the National Assembly, and then a request is made to the Constitutional Court. Therefore, even if this petition is immediately forwarded to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the National Assembly cannot request a dissolution judgment from the Constitutional Court.