Ruling party's Bae Hyun-jin to join impeachment vote this week, signaling crack in party unity

By KTimes

The ruling People Power Party (PPP), which adopted a unified stance of opposing the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol, is showing signs of division. Rep. Bae Hyun-jin, who abstained from last week's first impeachment vote, has announced plans to participate in the upcoming vote.

Bae posted a brief statement on Tuesday on her social media, saying, "I will participate in this week's vote." However, she did not clarify whether she would vote in favor of the motion.

Bae is the first PPP member, aside from lawmakers Ahn Cheol-soo, Kim Yea-ji and Kim Sang-wook — who participated in last week’s vote — to publicly declare her intention to vote.

Speaking to reporters at the National Assembly, she said, "While many members respected the opinions of senior colleagues and refrained from voting last time, there is a shared sentiment that it was a major misstep for the party."

She added, "The opinions of senior members do not outweigh those of all first- and second-term members. Given that a majority now believes in participating, there will no longer be a collective boycott of the vote, as if it were party policy."

Meanwhile, Rep. Kim Sang-wook, who participated in the first vote but opposed the impeachment motion in line with party policy, held a press conference on Tuesday to announce his shift in stance.

He stated, "I will vote in favor of the next impeachment motion against a president who planned an unconstitutional and anti-democratic martial law. My decision is based on the conservative values of upholding constitutional order and defending liberal democracy. I also deeply apologize."

He urged his party and colleagues to join the impeachment effort, calling it a violation of conservative principles to support the president.

During last week’s vote, the PPP staged a mass walkout from the plenary session, leaving only Ahn, Kim Sang-wook and Kim Yea-ji to cast their votes.

With 192 opposition members also voting, the count fell short of the 200 required for a quorum, and the vote was invalidated. With Bae now joining the process, only four more PPP members need to participate to meet the quorum. If all participating members vote in favor, the impeachment motion will pass.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.