Democratic Party discusses the impeachment of conservative Supreme Court Chief justice over delayed judicial appointments

The Democratic Party of Korea is stepping up talk of impeaching Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae. After party leadership candidates Kim Min-seok and Song Young-gil raised the possibility of impeaching Cho, the party’s floor leadership and members of the National Assembly’s Legislation and Judiciary Committee have also lent support to the idea, drawing attention to what lies behind the push.
Rather than actually moving to impeach Cho, however, the ruling camp is focusing its criticism on his delay in filling vacant judicial posts. Behind this is concern that delays in appointments to the Supreme Court could also slow proceedings in insurrection-related cases.
According to political circles on the 7th, Han Byung-do, acting Democratic Party leader and floor leader, told Cho during a floor strategy meeting at the National Assembly that morning, “Even now, you should nominate a successor to former Supreme Court Justice Roh Tae-ak.” He added, “Failing to do so amounts to abandoning your legal duties, and the chief justice himself is deepening public distrust of the judiciary.”
Han’s remarks were seen as adding weight to Kim and Song’s calls for Cho’s impeachment. Kim had earlier written on X on July 30, “Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae’s dereliction of duty has gone too far. He continues indefinitely to delay nominating a successor to former Justice Roh Tae-ak while proceeding with the selection of a successor to Justice Lee Heung-gu, who retires in September.” He added, “If he does not immediately nominate a successor, can he really avoid impeachment in defense of the constitutional order? This is a warning.”
Song then held a press conference at the National Assembly on the 5th and said of Cho, “We will pursue impeachment proceedings, along with a jurisdictional dispute over the infringement of the National Assembly’s authority and a criminal complaint for dereliction of duty.” Shortly after Song’s warning, Kim responded on X, “I agree. We will not tolerate anyone who disregards the Constitution and the people.”
Ruling-party members of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee also criticized Cho at the National Assembly Communication Hall that day, saying, “The judiciary has ground to a halt because of Chief Justice Cho’s failure to perform his duties. This is a vacuum in judicial administration rarely seen in our constitutional history.” Committee Chair Seo Young-kyo said, “Chief Justice Cho is already someone who should be subject to impeachment,” adding, “As chair of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, I strongly condemn this.”
Calls to impeach Cho were first raised in March by hard-line lawmakers from the broader ruling bloc. However, with a potential public backlash expected ahead of the June 3 local elections, the Democratic Party leadership under then-chairman Chung Cheong-rae distanced itself from the idea at the time.
Speaking to reporters in Yeonggwang, South Jeolla Province, on March 6, Chung said, “Given the public’s strong desire for this and the strong determination among our party’s lawmakers, we will carefully gather and consolidate opinions through a general meeting of lawmakers.” He nevertheless added, “Impeaching Chief Justice Cho is not the official position of the party leadership. If Chief Justice Cho has even a shred of conscience, it would be better for him to quickly make his own decision about his future.”
A ruling-camp official said, “If you look closely at Kim’s remarks, they were also a warning that ‘it will inevitably lead to impeachment,’ and should be understood as an attempt to draw attention to the fact that no nomination for a Supreme Court justice is being made.” The official added, “This is intended to condemn and warn against the failure to take action. If follow-up measures are taken, it is unlikely to go as far as impeachment.”