The Democratic Party approved the confirmation bill for Prime Minister nominee Han Seong-sook on June 30, despite opposition from the People Power Party, which criticized the move as a "loyalty report" to President Lee Jae-myung.
During a plenary session, the National Assembly passed the confirmation bill with 166 votes in favor out of 167 members present, with one vote deemed invalid.
Earlier in the day, members of the special committee on personnel held a meeting, where they adopted a progress report on Han's nomination, led by the Democratic Party in the absence of the People Power Party. This resulted in a failure to reach a bipartisan agreement, as the opposition party did not attend the previous day's meeting either.
In response, People Power Party members, including lawmaker Kang Seung-kyu, criticized the Democratic Party's report, stating it was not a personnel confirmation report but rather a "bulletproof report" that disregarded public expectations and served as a loyalty report to the president.
The confirmation bill for the Prime Minister requires a majority of the members present to vote in favor. With 161 seats, the Democratic Party can proceed without opposition support. This follows a similar situation on July 3 of the previous year, when the confirmation vote for Prime Minister Kim Min-seok was also conducted without the participation of the People Power Party. The Democratic Party's push for Han's confirmation is expected to further escalate tensions between the two parties.
Additionally, during the same plenary session, the appointment of Ko Yong-jin as National Assembly Secretary General was unanimously approved.
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.