Supreme Chairman Woo Won-sik, Deadline for Vote on Prime Minister Kim Min-seok's Confirmation Proposal Set
The Democratic Party of Korea has expressed a strong commitment to processing the confirmation proposal for Prime Minister nominee Kim Min-seok within this temporary National Assembly session.
The Democratic Party stated that the verification of the nominee has already been completed, and plans to process the confirmation proposal by July 3 at the latest.
On the 29th, Chairman Woo Won-sik said on his Facebook, "The confirmation proposal for the Prime Minister must be voted on at the plenary session this Thursday (3rd) at the latest," and added, "Today is the deadline for adopting the report on the personnel hearing, but I have not yet heard any news of negotiations between the ruling and opposition parties. I earnestly request both parties to gather their wisdom once again."
Possibility of Dramatic Settlement Amidst Stalemate Between Ruling and Opposition Parties Is Low
The personnel hearing for nominee Kim on the 26th ended in an impasse without adopting the report due to differences between the ruling and opposition parties.
Afterward, both parties continued a standoff with no room for concessions, making the possibility of a dramatic settlement within the remaining four days low.
On this day, the floor leader of the People Power Party, Song Eon-seok, announced on Facebook, "Tomorrow at 11 AM, the People Power Party will hold the 'Public Hearing on Issues of Kim Min-seok, Prime Minister Nominee' to investigate the nominee’s problems from the perspective of the general public."
This indicates their intention to conduct an independent verification process led by the opposition party, separate from the official personnel hearing.
Song emphasized, "The suspicions regarding nominee Kim have not been resolved but have only grown. The public is increasingly convinced that Kim Min-seok is incompetent and an unethical unqualified candidate," and added, “Nominee Kim has set the precedent that ‘if you insist, you can win the personnel hearing.’ With the president and the prime minister both entangled in various past crimes and suspicions, it is unrealistic to expect the lower stream to be clear."
In response, the Democratic Party's Floor Spokesperson Kim Hyun-jung strongly criticized, "The behavior of the People Power Party refusing to adopt the nominee's report and paralyzing the National Assembly schedules is tantamount to supporting insurrection and denying the results of the presidential election."
He continued, "The People Power Party occupied the main building of the National Assembly and held Kim Min-seok’s confirmation as hostage, claiming 'the redistribution of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee chair must come first.'" He asserted, "The Democratic Party will process the confirmation of Prime Minister Kim Min-seok and the supplementary budget without any delay during this temporary National Assembly session."
Kim Floor Spokesperson added, "The verification of nominee Kim is already complete. The public is also eager for the Yoon Suk-yeol administration to be firmly established."
Image source: Prime Minister nominee Kim Min-seok answers questions from People Power Party lawmaker Joo Jin-woo during the personnel hearing held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the afternoon of June 25, 2025. / News1, Kim Yong-tae, the emergency response committee chairman of the People Power Party (right), visits Rep. Na Kyung-won, who is staging an overnight protest demanding the withdrawal of Kim Min-seok's nomination and the return of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee chair to the opposition party, at the Rotunda Hall of the National Assembly on the afternoon of June 29, 2025. From left: Park Sung-hoon, Na Kyung-won, Kim Yong-tae, Kang Sun-young. / News1
