The Constitutional Court has decided to hold the '9th hearing date' for the impeachment trial of President Yoon Suk-yeol on the 18th at 2 p.m. Previously, the trial for this case had only been assigned up to the 8th date. In the past, there were 17 hearing dates in the impeachment trial of former President Park Geun-hye, and 7 dates in the trial of former President Roh Moo-hyun.
Acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung-bae noted during the 8th hearing date of President Yoon's impeachment trial on the 13th that 'the 9th hearing date will be on February 18 at 2 p.m., and we will examine evidence that has been adopted but not investigated so far.' He added, 'We will provide an opportunity to organize the claims and evidence presented so far.'
Additionally, the Constitutional Court judges have decided to hold a deliberation on the 14th to determine whether to adopt the witnesses requested by President Yoon's side, including Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and former Vice Administrator Hong Jang-won of the National Intelligence Service. If new witnesses are adopted, additional hearing dates may be required for examination.
Previously, the Constitutional Court rejected the request for Prime Minister Han as a witness, citing that he was 'not relevant' to the case. In response, President Yoon's side submitted the witness request again, arguing that the Prime Minister is well aware of the reasons for declaring a state of emergency. Former Vice Administrator Hong has attended as a witness once, but President Yoon's side claims that he should be called again for examination without time restrictions.
The possibility of adding hearing dates in President Yoon's impeachment trial has drawn attention concerning the schedule for the next presidential election. The Constitution states that 'if the president is removed by impeachment, a successor must be elected within 60 days.' Former President Park Geun-hye received her impeachment decision 11 days after going through 17 hearing dates. The 19th presidential election was held on May 9, 2017, exactly 60 days after the impeachment decision.