South Korean lawmakers to vote on 2nd impeachment motion in Parliament today against President Yoon Suk Yeol

South Korean lawmakers will vote in Parliament today on second impeachment motion against President Yoon Suk Yeol following his brief attempt to impose martial law. The voting will take place around 12:30 PM Indian Standard Time.

The motion will require the support of 200 of the National Assembly’s 300 members to pass, and only then the matter will proceed to the Constitutional Court. 

 

For the impeachment motion to pass, opposition lawmakers must convince eight parliamentarians from Mr Yoon’s conservative People Power Party (PPP) to defect. Yesterday, seven ruling party lawmakers had pledged to support impeachment.

 

The voting comes a week after the first attempt to remove President Yoon for the martial law debacle foundered.

 

If President Yoon is impeached, his powers will be suspended until the Constitutional Court decides whether to reinstate or remove him from office. 

 

According to media reports, during this time, President Yoon, who is under criminal investigation for alleged



treason and has been banned from leaving the country, will be placed on leave until the court delivers its verdict. 

 

If he is removed by the court, an election to replace him must be held within 60 days. If upheld by the court, Yoon would be the second president in South Korea’s history to be removed from office through impeachment after former President Park Geun-hye in 2017.

 

The country remains deeply unsettled following the South Korean President’s declaration of martial law on 3rd of this month, which was swiftly overturned by the National Assembly. 

 

Yesterday, thousands of people took to the streets across the country demanding President Yoon’s resignation and jailing over martial law attempt. 

 

Civic groups organised the candlelight vigil in front of the National Assembly in western Seoul, while smaller groups gathered in other parts of the country to continue their demonstrations calling for Yoon’s removal from office.