Ruling and Opposition Parties Face Off Ahead of Choo Kyungho Arrest Motion Vote... People Power Party Considers Filibuster

People Power Party Considers Filibuster
Democratic Party Seeks to Pass About 90 Non-Contentious Bills
Song Eonseok: "I Believe the Baseless Warrant Will Be Dismissed"

Tensions are rising both inside and outside the National Assembly ahead of the plenary vote on the arrest motion for Assemblyman Choo Kyungho of the People Power Party, who served as floor leader during the 12·3 Martial Law.

The People Power Party is considering launching a filibuster, or unlimited debate, even on legislative bills agreed upon by both parties, in protest against the vote on the arrest motion. While there had been expectations that so-called non-contentious bills would be processed smoothly at the plenary session, the situation has now changed. There is a possibility that only the arrest motion for Assemblyman Choo will be processed, with the session ending without addressing other bills.

Kim Byunggi, Floor Leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the Policy Coordination Meeting held at the National Assembly on November 27, 2025. Photo by Kim Hyunmin

Baek Seunga, floor spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Korea, explained to reporters on November 27, "The Democratic Party is willing to process about 90 non-contentious bills, but since the People Power Party is opposed, the floor leaders of both parties will meet to decide how many bills to bring forward." The People Power Party plans to determine its response level through a general meeting of its lawmakers. The party has not made any explicit statements regarding the possible filibuster and remains silent on the matter.

However, Song Eonseok, floor leader of the People Power Party, appeared to be bracing for the plenary vote on the arrest motion during the general meeting, saying, "If it goes to court, I firmly believe that the baseless arrest warrant will definitely be dismissed." While the Democratic Party largely supports the arrest of Assemblyman Choo, Assemblyman Park Jiweon predicted that the motion would be dismissed.

Jang Donghyuk, leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on November 27, 2025. Photo by Kim Hyunmin

The parliamentary investigation into the controversy over the decision to forgo an appeal in the Daejang-dong case is also a key issue. Initially, the Democratic Party insisted that the investigation be conducted by the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, while the People Power Party called for a special committee with equal representation from both parties. However, as the People Power Party has expressed its willingness to accept a judiciary committee investigation, provided that Assemblywoman Na Kyungwon is appointed as secretary of the committee, attention is now focused on whether the two parties can reach a compromise.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.