South Korea Acting President Unlikely to Comply with Opposition's Impeachment Push... "Quorum Controversy Complex"

South Korea Acting President Likely Not to Appoint Constitutional Court Justice
Democratic Party Pushes Impeachment...Ruling Party "Unacceptable"
Government Also Negative...Suspension of Duties Decision Deferred

Acting President and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo visited the Jungbu Fire Station in Seoul on the 24th to receive a status report for the year-end and New Year period. Photo by Yonhap News

The Democratic Party of Korea is pushing for the impeachment of Acting President and Prime Minister Han Deok-su, but the Prime Minister's Office has stated that "there is a controversy over the quorum," leading to analysis that they may not accept it. If Acting President Han takes the same 'non-compliance with impeachment' stance as the People Power Party, not only the appointment of constitutional court justices but also the impeachment trial of President Yoon Seok-yeol is expected to be delayed.

According to the Prime Minister's Office on the 26th, even if the Democratic Party processes the consent to appointment for the three constitutional court justice candidates recommended by the National Assembly at the plenary session that day, Acting President Han is leaning towards not appointing them. A Prime Minister's Office official said, "There is a question of whether the position of acting president is the right place to make political decisions," adding, "Issues where the ruling and opposition parties clash, such as the appointment of constitutional court justices, should be decided through consensus by the ruling and opposition parties as representatives of the people."

Currently, the Democratic Party holds the position that if the consent to appointment is processed at the plenary session, Acting President Han must appoint them without delay, but the People Power Party opposes this, arguing that Acting President Han does not have the authority to appoint constitutional court justices. A consensus between the ruling and opposition parties is practically impossible.

In this case, Acting President Han must make a decision, but given the stark differences between the ruling and opposition parties, the likelihood of appointing constitutional court justices is low. The Democratic Party plans to immediately propose an impeachment bill if Acting President Han does not appoint the justices, report it at the plenary session on the afternoon of the 27th, and hold a plenary session the following day to process it.

The issue is whether the government and the ruling party will accept the impeachment bill led by the Democratic Party even if it passes. The ruling and opposition parties sharply disagree over the quorum for the impeachment resolution against Acting President Han, with the ruling party citing the majority of the total members (151 members) based on the Cabinet members standard, and the opposition citing two-thirds of the total members (200 members) based on the presidential standard.

Within the Prime Minister's Office, there is a sentiment that simply accepting the impeachment resolution will be difficult. A Prime Minister's Office official said, "Because there is a controversy over the quorum, the issue is complicated," adding, "Even if the impeachment bill passes, it is still difficult to judge whether Acting President Han must comply with it or not."

Earlier, the People Power Party stated, "If the impeachment bill against Acting President Han passes the plenary session with less than two-thirds of the total members, it will not be accepted, and Acting President Han can continue to perform his duties," and it is explained that the government is likely to agree with this stance.

However, it is difficult to predict whether Acting President Han will actually choose to not comply with the impeachment resolution. The ruling party believes that Speaker Woo Won-sik has the primary authority to judge the quorum, so Acting President Han’s duties will be suspended for the time being, but People Power Party lawmaker Joo Jin-woo claimed the day before that "(Speaker Woo) does not have the primary authority to judge."

Democratic Party floor spokesperson Kang Yoo-jung said regarding the controversy over the quorum for the impeachment resolution against Acting President Han, "Saying that 200 seats are needed just because it is an acting president is an opinion contrary to the public's wishes," adding, "The moment the Speaker of the National Assembly decides with 151 seats will become a precedent and have a precedent-setting function. Rather than presenting opinions on uncharted territory, the Speaker's interpretation is more important in this situation."