Cho Kuk presses for Cho Hee-dae’s impeachment, calling it “the last chance”; ruling party slows pace with parliamentary probe

[Financial News] Cho Kuk, head of the Rebuilding Korea Party’s Institute for Innovation Policy Studies, directly pressured the Kim Min-seok-led leadership of the Democratic Party of Korea to impeach Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae. The Democratic Party, meanwhile, appears to be responding to demands from its hard-line supporters through a parliamentary investigation while slowing the push for immediate impeachment. The move is seen as reflecting a political calculation to focus on improving people’s livelihoods rather than engage in an all-out confrontation with the judiciary, in order to prevent centrist voters from drifting away.
On Facebook on the 25th, Cho Kuk described Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon’s acquittal on appeal as “a counterattack by judicial politics” and criticized the Democratic Party, saying, “It missed the right moment to impeach Cho Hee-dae and reform the judiciary.” Targeting the mood within the party, which was relieved that the likelihood of a Seoul mayoral by-election had declined, he urged the party to act decisively: “Can the leadership of the ruling party, which thinks it’s fortunate that there probably won’t be an election, lead the party to victory in the 2028 general election? The last chance to impeach Chief Justice Cho has come.”
But the Democratic Party has a different calculation. Party spokesperson Shin Hyun-young told reporters at the National Assembly that day, “Party leader Kim Min-seok also mentioned the possibility of a parliamentary investigation,” adding that the party was likely to discuss a specific timetable for moving forward with its floor leadership after the parliamentary audit. She stressed, “We will comprehensively consider all options, and if we decide to proceed, we will make sustained efforts to ensure the outcome delivers results.”
The Democratic Party’s decision to ease up on its impeachment push against Chief Justice Cho is seen as an effort to build a case for impeachment through a parliamentary investigation while avoiding the political costs of immediately initiating proceedings. Choi Min-hee, a member of the party’s Supreme Council known as a hard-liner, also appeared on Kim Ou-joon’s YouTube channel on the 22nd and conveyed the mood among party leaders, saying, “It seems they view a parliamentary investigation as a process of persuading centrists and reasonable conservatives.” This reflects the view that broader public support is needed, rather than pushing ahead solely on the demands of hard-line supporters.
For the Democratic Party, it would be a burden to have the political agenda consumed by an impeachment dispute when it faces a host of pressing issues, including instability in the real estate market and the recovery of the livelihood economy. The party is therefore seen as seeking to ease the backlash from hard-line supporters through a parliamentary investigation while prioritizing policy achievements to regain support among centrist voters.
The Democratic Party has not, however, abandoned the impeachment option. The possibility of initiating impeachment proceedings within the year remains open, depending on the results of the parliamentary investigation. The future course of public opinion and whether the party can establish grounds for impeachment are expected to determine how forcefully it responds.

[email protected] Jiwon Song Reporter