In a landmark decision on Thursday, April 3, 2025, South Korea’s Constitutional Court unanimously upheld the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-yeol, officially bringing his presidency to a dramatic close.
The ruling followed months of political turmoil stemming from Yoon’s controversial declaration of martial law in December 2024—an extraordinary move that the court determined to be a “serious breach of democratic principles” and a gross overreach of presidential authority.
According to the court, Yoon’s directive for military intervention in the National Assembly and reported attempts to detain opposition lawmakers constituted a “grave abuse of power” and a violation of the trust placed in him by the public.
Although the martial law order was revoked within six hours amid intense domestic and international backlash, the incident triggered swift impeachment proceedings in the National Assembly, culminating in the court’s decisive ruling this week.
The South Korean public remains sharply divided over the crisis. Protests both for and against Yoon’s removal filled the streets of Seoul and other cities ahead of the court’s verdict. Yet a recent national poll suggests that more than 60% of citizens supported his ouster.
With Yoon now removed from office, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo has stepped in as acting president. A special presidential election must be held within 60 days. All eyes are now on opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, who is considered the frontrunner despite ongoing legal challenges of his own.
This marks only the second time in South Korea’s democratic era that a sitting president has been impeached and removed from office—the first being the 2017 ouster of Park Geun-hye.
