South Korea’s parliament voted overwhelmingly on Friday to impeach Acting President Han Duck-soo, marking another chapter in the country’s ongoing political crisis.
Han had stepped into the acting presidency after President Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached on December 14, following his controversial imposition of martial law earlier in the month, which resulted in the suspension of his presidential powers.
Following Han’s removal, Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok is set to become the next acting president, as stipulated by South Korean law.
The motion to impeach Han passed with 192 votes in favor out of the 300-member National Assembly. The Democratic Party (DP), which holds a majority in parliament, initiated the impeachment over Han’s refusal to appoint three Constitutional Court justices.
While the DP had approved the nominees on Thursday, Han insisted that bipartisan consensus was necessary before he would proceed with their appointments, further intensifying political tensions.
Debate erupted over whether the impeachment of an acting president required a simple majority or a two-thirds vote. Despite differing opinions from constitutional scholars and lawmakers, National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik, a member of the DP, ruled that a simple majority sufficed to remove Han from office.
The impeachment adds another layer of uncertainty to South Korea’s political landscape, already shaken by President Yoon’s removal and ongoing disputes between ruling and opposition factions.
