During the Impeachment Motion Against Acting President Han, Yoon Appoints Proxy and Pledges "Active Response" to the Office...

Unprecedented 'Proxy of a Proxy' Realized
Choi Sang-mok Appeals, "Please Reconsider Impeachment Proposal"

Acting President and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo is delivering an emergency national address on the 26th at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Government Office Press Photographers Group

An impeachment motion against Han Deok-su, Acting President and Prime Minister, is expected to be passed in the plenary session of the National Assembly on the afternoon of the 27th. Accordingly, the unprecedented 'acting of the acting president' system in constitutional history is about to become a reality. This means that the acting president will change again about two weeks after President Yoon Seok-yeol's suspension. Given the current political situation, the possibility of another change in the acting president cannot be ruled out, which is amplifying economic, political, and diplomatic uncertainties.

The National Assembly plans to hold a plenary session in the afternoon to vote on the impeachment motion against Acting President Han. This is the first time an impeachment motion against an acting president has been submitted and voted on. Although there is disagreement between the ruling and opposition parties regarding the quorum required for the impeachment of the acting prime minister, Speaker Woo Won-shik is likely to decide based on the opposition's claim that a majority of the total members of the National Assembly (151 or more) is required. In this case, Han's duties will be suspended, and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok will act as the acting president.

Han has been criticized for bringing about his own impeachment by exercising the presidential veto power during his roughly two-week acting period while withholding the appointment of constitutional court justices. However, the opposition party is also unlikely to avoid criticism for causing government confusion through successive impeachment attempts. As political uncertainty prolongs, the won-dollar exchange rate surpassed the 1,470 won mark for the first time since the financial crisis on the morning of the same day, continuing the turmoil.

Choi Sang-mok, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, said on the day, "The impeachment motion against the acting president is no different from an impeachment motion against the entire cabinet." He added, "If the impeachment motion is passed, the executive branch's capabilities will be weakened due to the ongoing threat of impeachment, and ultimately, the existence of cabinet members will become meaningless," urging the opposition to reconsider the impeachment motion against the acting president.

Yoon appoints lawyer Bae Bo-yoon and others for impeachment trial

President Yoon, who had maintained a 'no response' stance, broke his silence and began full legal action at 2 p.m. on the day, coinciding with the first hearing at the Constitutional Court. It has been 13 days since the impeachment motion was passed in the National Assembly on the 14th and submitted to the Constitutional Court, and Yoon decided to appoint representatives and actively respond to the impeachment trial.

The legal team for the impeachment trial is led by lawyer Bae Bo-yoon (Judicial Research and Training Institute class 20), a former constitutional researcher who served as the public relations officer at the Constitutional Court during former President Park Geun-hye's impeachment case. Lawyer Yoon Gap-geun (class 19), who served as head of the Anti-Corruption Investigation Department at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office and Daegu High Prosecutors' Office chief, and lawyer Bae Jin-han (class 20), a former judge and Yoon's classmate from Seoul National University Law School (class of '79), also joined. The representative of the defense team handling criminal cases, including the charge of leading a rebellion related to the declaration of martial law that President Yoon is facing from investigative agencies, is former Broadcasting and Communications Commission Chairman Kim Hong-il (class 15).

Having maintained silence, President Yoon plans to launch a full-scale public opinion campaign starting with the impeachment trial response. Amid the ongoing impeachment offensives, including the unprecedented impeachment vote against the acting prime minister as acting president, the strategy is to rally conservative supporters who are opposed to the opposition's successive impeachments. With the legal team for President Yoon effectively finalized, they intend to actively respond to the impeachment trial preparatory hearing scheduled for the day and monitor shifts in public opinion. Yoon's side stated, "Lawyer Bae and other representatives for President Yoon will submit their appointment letters to the Constitutional Court and attend the impeachment trial preparatory hearing at 2 p.m."