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South Korea’s Constitutional Court has ousted Yoon Suk Yeol as president, upholding parliament’s impeachment of the hardline former prosecutor.
Yoon’s attempt to impose martial law last year led to his suspension from office and triggered political turmoil in Asia’s fourth-largest economy.
The resulting leadership vacuum has paralysed the government just as it must grapple with a slowing economy, aggressive US trade policies and a growing nuclear threat from North Korea.
What did the court decide?
The judges unanimously upheld lawmakers’ view that Yoon exceeded his powers with his shock declaration of martial law in December.
South Korea’s constitution allows the president to declare martial law “when it is required to cope with a military necessity or to maintain the public safety and order by mobilisation of the military forces in time of war, armed conflict or similar national emergency”.
But the opposition-controlled National Assembly argued in its impeachment motion in December that the country had not been experiencing an emergency of the severity required to justify a martial law decree, a stance now endorsed by the Constitutional Court.
The motion also accused Yoon of procedural violations, including his deployment of soldiers to storm the National Assembly in an apparent bid to prevent lawmakers voting to reject martial law.
In his final defence before the Constitutional Court in February, Yoon argued that his decree was necessary to “alert the public” to the “wickedness” of the leftwing opposition and what he described as “external forces, including North Korea, along with anti-state elements within our society”.
But on Friday the court ruled by a margin of 8-0 that Yoon had “abandoned his duty to uphold the constitution and gravely betrayed the trust of the Korean people”.
What happens to Yoon?
Following his impeachment in December, Yoon was suspended from exercising his constitutional duties but remained as the country’s nominal president and head of state.
Friday’s ruling removed him from office with immediate effect, making him an ordinary private citizen. South Korea’s one-term limit for presidents means he cannot seek re-election. Yoon also faces criminal insurrection charges relating to his attempt to impose martial law, which he denies.
A verdict in his criminal trial, which is set to begin on April 14, is expected later this year or in early 2026. If convicted, Yoon could in theory face life imprisonment or even the death penalty, although South Korea has not executed anyone since 1997.
Who will replace Yoon?
According to the South Korean constitution, a presidential election to choose Yoon’s successor must be held within 60 days.
Lee Jae-myung, a combative factory worker-turned-lawyer who leads the leftwing opposition Democratic party, is ahead in the polls. He was defeated by Yoon by less than a percentage point in the 2022 presidential election.
Contenders from Yoon’s conservative People Power party include labour minister Kim Moon-soo, Seoul mayor Oh Se-hoon, Daegu mayor Hong Joon-pyo and former party leader Han Dong-hoon.
While the Democratic party’s Lee is widely seen as the frontrunner, he also faces legal challenges. Prosecutors are appealing a recent high court verdict clearing him of making false statements during an election campaign.
He is also due to stand trial this month on charges relating to the channeling of funds to North Korea.
Convictions in either case could bar Lee from public office, although it is unclear what would happen if he is elected president before the trials are concluded. He denies all wrongdoing.
Who is in charge for now?
Prime minister Han Duck-soo, a Yoon appointee and long-serving technocrat, will continue as acting president until the election.
Han, who took over as acting president immediately after Yoon was impeached, was himself suspended for several months from late December after opposition parties voted to impeach him over his refusal to fill three vacant spots on the nine-member Constitutional Court.
The role of acting president then fell to Choi Sang-mok, the country’s finance minister, who filled two of the three vacant spots on the Constitutional Court.
Last month, the court overturned Han’s impeachment, restoring him as prime minister and acting president.
Will this end South Korea’s political crisis?
Friday’s ruling brings South Korea closer to addressing its leadership vacuum, but the tensions raised by Yoon’s martial law declaration are unlikely to dissipate soon.
Supporters and opponents of Yoon’s impeachment have held regular demonstrations across the country. Some pro-Yoon protests have been marked by violence, with hardline conservatives storming a Seoul courthouse after he was detained on criminal charges in January.
Increasingly wild conspiracy theories have circulated among Yoon loyalists, including one baseless claim widely shared on social media that Chinese nationals had been caught tampering with South Korea’s election systems and subsequently deported through a US military base.
The Democratic party’s Lee is also a deeply polarising figure. He went on hunger strike in 2023 to protest against what he described as Yoon’s “prosecutorial dictatorship”.
Last year, Lee was stabbed in the neck by a member of the public, and in recent weeks, he has made several public appearances wearing a bulletproof vest.
Han, the acting president, and the People Power party have previously vowed to accept the Constitutional Court’s decision. Some analysts said the anger among conservatives could prove limited as attention quickly turns to who will emerge as the right’s new standard-bearer.
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