Thousands on the streets of Seoul are celebrating after South Korean MPs voted to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol
Yoon will be suspended while the prime minister will serve as acting president. The constitutional court now has six months to rule on the impeachment.
A total of 204 MPs approved the motion to impeach Yoon, who plunged the country into political turmoil with a short-lived martial law declaration last week
Yoon survived an impeachment vote last weekend and has clung to power, despite mounting calls for him to step down
Yoon and his allies are currently under investigation for insurrection charges, and a travel ban has been slapped on several of them
According to parliamentary speaker Woo Won-shik, Yoon’s presidential powers and duties will be suspended after copies of a document on the impeachment are delivered to him and to the Constitutional Court.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo is set to take over as acting president.
Even after his powers are suspended, Yoon will remain in office until the Constitutional Court decides if it will sustain his impeachment.
With 204 votes in favour, 85 votes against, three abstentions and eight invalid votes out of the 300 lawmakers, Speaker Woo Won-shik announced the impeachment vote had passed, and concluded the session.
"To the people, we hope your end of year will be a little happier now, and all your cancelled year-end celebrations to be restored," he said.
"The future of the Republic of Korea and our hope is in the hands of the people, our hope is strong. Thank you very much," he said as he ended the session.
The moment the results were announced, cheers erupted from the Democratic Party, while members of the ruling party quietly left the chamber.
During the vote count, some ruling party lawmakers were seen clasping their hands in prayer.
Credit: BBC