Han's impeachment came just a day after he insisted on a parliamentary agreement granting him the authority to appoint three nominees to fill the vacancies at the court.
With the motion passed by 192 lawmakers voting in favor at the National Assembly, where the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) holds a supermajority, Han's duties were suspended, marking the first time in South Korea's constitutional history that an acting president has been impeached.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok replaced Han as acting president.
The DP has been pushing to fill the court's three vacant seats, as it currently has only six sitting justices out of the nine, requiring a unanimous decision to uphold Yoon's impeachment after his failed declaration of martial law earlier this month.
But the ruling People Power Party (PPP) argued that an acting president is not entitled to make such decisions.
The DP also claimed that Han's refusal to appoint them could be seen as part of his involvement in Yoon's botched martial law attempt, while also condemning his refusal to respond to the DP's demand to promulgate two bills for investigations by independent prosecutors into Yoon and his wife Kim Keon Hee over several allegations.
Kim has been embroiled in a string of controversies including the acceptance of a luxury handbag and involvement in a stock manipulation scheme.
Prior to a parliamentary plenary session, National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik explained that the motion could be decided by a majority of sitting lawmakers, as stipulated by the Constitution. While there were differing views on the quorum, he clarified that the motion is aimed at the post of the Prime Minister, who is temporarily exercising presidential powers.
Woo's declaration to set the quorum for Han's impeachment at 151 votes enabled the motion to pass with overwhelming support from the DP alone. The threshold was set at a simple majority of 151 votes, as typically applied to the prime minister and cabinet members, instead of the two-thirds or 200 votes in the 300-seat National Assembly, typically required for a president, causing the PPP to boycott the vote.
But the Constitution does not explicitly define detailed criteria including the quorum for impeachment motions against an acting president, raising opposing views and differing interpretations amid the country's unprecedented political crisis.
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