What to expect as Constitutional Court deliberates Yoon's impeachment

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What to expect as Constitutional Court deliberates Yoon's impeachment

Published: 26 Feb. 2025, 18:55 Updated: 26 Feb. 2025, 19:29

MICHAEL LEE
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Police stand guard outside the Constitutional Court in Jongno District, central Seoul, on Feb. 26. [YONHAP]

Justices of the Constitutional Court began deliberations on Wednesday to decide whether to dismiss or reinstate President Yoon Suk Yeol following the 11th and final hearing of his impeachment trial the previous day.

The court’s justices are expected to meet daily to discuss the case except for holidays and weekends, when they are likely to still review evidence and testimony presented over the past seven weeks at home or in their offices.

However, the time and location of their discussions will not be disclosed, according to a court official who spoke on condition of anonymity to reporters.

To prevent leaks, court meeting rooms will be inspected daily to prevent the installation of covert listening devices.

The justices’ security details will also be enhanced amid high tensions surrounding Yoon’s trial.

The court’s verdict is likely to be announced in mid-March given the length of time it took for justices to issue their decisions in the two previous impeachment trials involving former presidents Roh Moo-hyun and Park Geun-hye.

Both rulings were announced on a Friday, which observers believe is favored by justices hoping to imbue their verdicts with a sense of closure following political turmoil.

As such, most judicial observers believe the court will issue its ruling on March 14, though a verdict on March 7 is also possible if the justices reach an agreement earlier than expected.

The exact date of the ruling is usually announced two or three days in advance.

At least six of the court’s eight current justices must agree to uphold the parliamentary impeachment motion against Yoon to effect his removal from office.

As such, even a 5-3 majority in favor of the president’s dismissal would result in his reinstatement.

However, observers believe the justices will try to reach a complete agreement among themselves and issue a unanimous opinion to forestall further political conflict over Yoon’s impeachment.

That process of minimizing disagreements is expected to increase the length of time it will take for the justices to reach a verdict.

Both of the court’s rulings in past presidential impeachment cases were unanimous.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, and Rep. Jung Chung-rae deliver their final arguments at the 11th and last hearing of Yoon's impeachment trial at the Constitutional Court in Jongno District, central Seoul, on Feb. 25. [CONSTITUTIONAL COURT]

During his final statement in the trial on Tuesday, Yoon called on the justices to reinstate him, arguing that his martial law declaration on Dec. 3, 2024, was only intended to “alert the people of a national crisis” that he claimed was precipitated by antistate forces.

He also denied that he would try to declare martial law again since “so many people have become aware of the situation facing the country.”

Instead, he vowed to “take people’s concerns to heart” and do everything he can “to ensure this [incident] serves as a stepping stone toward a stronger, better Korea.”

He further promised to focus on “pushing for constitutional amendments that reflect the people's will and creating a political structure that aligns with ongoing societal changes” during what might remain of his five-year term.

However, Rep. Jung Chung-rae of the liberal Democratic Party (DP) called on the court to remove Yoon from office “for the sake of democracy” during his 40-minute concluding argument on behalf of the National Assembly’s impeachment committee, which acted as the prosecution in the case.

Jung argued that if the president intended for martial law to only serve as a warning to the public, he should not have sent troops to the legislature on the night of his short-lived decree.

Reactions from the country’s main political parties were also deeply divided on Yoon’s final argument.

Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, who serves as the floor leader of the conservative People Power Party (PPP), told reporters on Tuesday that the president “had convincingly explained the unavoidable necessity of imposing martial law.”

The PPP’s senior leadership has expressed sympathy with Yoon’s view that the DP forced his hand by repeatedly trying to establish special counsel probes targeting him and his allies and cutting state budgets.

Kweon also called on the Constitutional Court to “issue a fair and wise judgement” and repeated his earlier accusations that the justices had displayed “bias” during the impeachment proceedings.

However, DP senior spokesperson Jo Seoung-lae accused Yoon of “polluting the court with his bald-faced lies to the very end” and said the president’s “swift dismissal is the only way to put the Republic of Korea back on the right path.”