As of the morning of July. 3., the number of participants in the petition urging the National Assembly to propose a bill for the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-yeol surpassed 1 million. This petition was posted on the National Assembly’s website on the 24th of last month. Petitions that garner more than 50,000 consents within 30 days are referred to the Petition Examination Subcommittee of the relevant standing committee and may be presented to the plenary session. Petitions that pass the plenary session are then forwarded to the government, which is required to report the outcomes of the petition’s processing back to the National Assembly.
Given that the petition has already exceeded the 50,000-consent threshold, it must be reviewed by the Petition Examination Subcommittee of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the relevant standing committee. The subcommittee is composed of four Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) members, including Representative Kim Yong-min, and five People Power Party (PPP) members, including Representative Yoo Sang-bum. With opposition members holding a majority in the subcommittee and the chair of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee being a member of the Democratic Party, the Democratic Party has the potential to bring the petition to the plenary session if it chooses.
Park Chan-dae, acting representative and floor leader of the Democratic Party, remarked at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly, “Despite scolding and using a rod, the president remains unyielding and indifferent. Thus, within a short period of less than two weeks, 1 million people have joined the impeachment petition.” He added, “For the nearly capsized state affairs to find their way, the president must change first.” DPK Supreme Council member Rep. Jung Chung-rae noted, “If access had been smooth, the number of consents would have exceeded 5 million,” emphasizing, “This is the voice of the people calling for judgment on the Yoon Suk-yeol administration and the PPP.”
In response, the presidential office asserted, “We do not consider impeachment to be justified unless there is a clear and unequivocal illegal situation.” A presidential office official, speaking with reporters at the presidential office in Yongsan, Seoul, the previous day, said, “We need to observe the developments in the National Assembly,” adding, “It seems that the ongoing political talk of impeachment has disrupted the smooth functioning of state affairs.”
