The Democratic Party of Korea held a National Assembly plenary session alone on the 27th to elect the vacant standing committee chairs, including the chair of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the chair of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts, the chair of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee, and the chair of the Operations Committee. Unable to find common ground with the People Power Party regarding the redistribution of committee chairs, the party proceeded with the election process, stating that they could no longer delay legislation related to people's livelihoods, including the second supplementary budget.
On that day at 2 p.m., the Democratic Party convened a plenary session and elected Lee Chun-seok (fourth term, Iksan, North Jeolla Province) as the chair of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, Han Byeong-do (third term, Iksan, North Jeolla Province) as the chair of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts, and Kim Kyo-heung (third term, Seo-gu, Incheon) as the chair of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee through a secret ballot.
Before the voting, the Democratic Party noted that it would appoint these standing committee chairs during a general meeting held in the National Assembly. Following the customary practice that the ruling party's floor leader serves as the chair of the Operations Committee, Kim Byeong-ki, the acting party leader and floor leader of the Democratic Party, was elected.
A total of 171 members participated in the vote, including members of the Democratic Party and opposition parties such as the Rebuilding Korea Party, the Progressive Party, and the Reform Party. The People Power Party boycotted the plenary session in protest after the Democratic Party proceeded independently with the election of the four standing committee chairs and the National Assembly Speaker, Woo Won-sik, accepted the request for a sole plenary session.
The ruling and opposition parties held several meetings to discuss the redistribution of standing committee chairs and the schedule for plenary sessions since the inauguration of the Lee Jae-myung government, but they failed to reach an agreement. The People Power Party insisted that, given the change in power dynamics, the opposition should be granted either the chair of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee or the chair of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts for checks and balances within the legislature. In contrast, the Democratic Party firmly stated that since the composition of the standing committees for the 22nd National Assembly had already been completed, the allocation of committee chairs was not subject to negotiation.
On that day, the People Power Party requested that the schedule for electing the chairs of the standing committees be postponed for at least a week, stating their willingness to cooperate with the early election of the chair of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts, but this request was not accepted.
Ahead of the voting for the election of the standing committee chairs, the Speaker, Woo, stated, 'I have been encouraging and urging discussions to resolve the issues through consultations as much as possible, but even if we were to allow a few more days, there does not seem to be any prospect for progress in negotiations,' and he announced the election of the standing committee chairs.
The People Power Party strongly protested, stating that it was 'only cooperation in words.' Before the resolution regarding the 'extension of the activity period of the Special Committee for the Investigation of the 12.29 airplane disaster and for compensation for victims and their families,' agreed upon by both parties, could be voted on, all members left the plenary hall.
Afterward, the members gathered in the Rotunda of the National Assembly to hold a rally of condemnation. Song Eon-seok, the floor leader of the People Power Party, criticized, 'It hasn't even been a day since President Lee Jae-myung came to the National Assembly and requested cooperation with the opposition during his state of the nation address,' stating that 'the Democratic Party bears full responsibility for the breakdown of cooperation just a month after the government's launch.'
'The legislative rush of the dominant ruling party has finally begun. The Lee Jae-myung government will leverage the chair of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee today to stifle the legislative functions and choke the judiciary,' he asserted, appealing to the public to 'stop the reckless actions of the Lee Jae-myung administration.' The People Power Party, a minority party with 107 seats, currently lacks substantial means to prevent the Democratic Party from pushing through legislation.
The Democratic Party plans to hold a plenary session on the 30th to process the confirmation of Prime Minister nominee Kim Min-seok alone. They also aim to expedite the review of the supplementary budget of 30.5 trillion won to be concluded by the deadline of the temporary National Assembly session next month on the 4th.