Opposition parties elect chairpersons of 11 standing committees at National Assembly without ruling party

The opposition parties, including the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), held a plenary session on June 10 and elected the chairpersons of 11 standing committees, including the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. The 22nd National Assembly, which opened with the opening of the opposition parties alone for the first time in constitutional history, also began the composition of the standing committees at the National Assembly with the participation of “half” members. The political stalemate caused by the intensifying conflict between the ruling and opposition parties has become inevitable.

The opposition finalized the appointment of 11 standing committee chairpersons at the plenary session at 9 p.m., including the election of four-term DPK lawmaker Jung Chung-rae as the chairperson of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, without the participation of the ruling People’s Power Party (PPP) lawmakers. All 11 standing committee chairpersons elected on the day are from the DPK. Park Chan-dae, a three-term lawmaker and the DPK’s floor leader, was elected as the chairperson of the House Steering Committee, and Choi Min-hee, a second-term lawmaker, was elected as the chairperson of the Science, ICT, Future Planning, Broadcasting and Communications Committee.

The main opposition party elected Kim Young-ho as the chairperson of the Education Committee, Shin Jung-hoon of the Public Administration and Security Committee, Jeon Jae-soo of the Culture, Sports, and Tourism Committee, Eo Gi-gu of the Agriculture, Food, Rural Affairs, Oceans, and Fisheries Committee, Park Ju-min of the Health and Welfare Committee, Ahn Ho-young of the Environment and Labor Committee, and Maeng Sung-gyu of the Land Infrastructure and Transport Committee. Park Jeong was appointed as the chairperson of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts.

The ruling and opposition parties continued to negotiate at meetings of the ruling and opposition leaders chaired by National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-sik until just before the plenary session, but failed to reach an agreement. They were unable to narrow down their differences over the seats of chairpersons of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the House Steering Committee, and the Science, ICT, Future Planning, Broadcasting and Communications Committee.

The DPK, which secured a majority in the National Assembly, stuck to its position of securing the 11 posts, including those of the three key standing committees. The PPP, on the other hand, said that the DPK, the largest party in the floor, should chair the National Assembly and the PPP, the second party, should chair the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, according to custom. It also argued that the ruling party, which produced the president, should take the position of chairperson of the House Steering Committee.

As negotiations stalled, the DPK pushed for the composition of the standing committees, citing “public sentiment in the April 10 general election” and the provisions of the National Assembly Act.

It said that it is a measure that follows the people’s will, which gave the DPK 170 seats at the 22nd National Assembly, and complies with Article 41 of the National Assembly Act, which states that the election of standing committee chairpersons must be held within three days of the first meeting at the National Assembly after the general election. “We waited as much as possible to conclude the negotiations on the composition to hold a plenary session with the ruling and opposition parties' agreement, but the situation seems to be unchanged at the moment," adding, "We decided that if the opinion is not adjusted until the end, following the National Assembly Act is the way to move forward."

The PPP protested. “The DPK is dead and the National Assembly is also dead,” Chu Kyung-ho said shortly after the plenary session opened. “The National Assembly will unilaterally pass bad laws in favor of the DPK leader Lee Jae-myung. Chu criticized Woo, saying, “The Speaker of the National Assembly is supposed to mediate all of this and lead consultations, but he has become a spokesperson for the DPK’s general assembly of its lawmakers.”

The DPK expressed its intention to hold a vote on the remaining posts at seven standing committees, including the Strategy and Finance Committee, as early as June 13. “A plenary session is supposed to be held on Thursday according to the National Assembly Act,” said DPK’s spokesperson Yoon Jong-gun, adding, “If the PPP does not submit a list of members for the standing committees, the Speaker of the National Assembly will make a decision on the timing.”

If the DPK wins all seven remaining seats, it will dominate the 18 standing committees, as it did in the first half of the 21st National Assembly. At that time, the National Assembly opened 48 days into its term amid a standoff between the ruling and opposition parties over the composition of the standing committees. It was the latest opening since the beginning of the constitutional system in 1987.

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.