People Power Party Standing Committee Chair Candidates Selected…Final Election in National Assembly Plenary Session

The second half of the 22nd National Assembly resumed normal operations on July 23 after electing seven standing committee chairpersons allocated to the opposition parties, ending a 54-day suspension. However, numerous contentious issues remain, including the amendment of the Criminal Procedure Act concerning the retention or abolition of supplementary investigative powers, and the special prosecutor bill to investigate the nationwide shortage of ballot papers during the 9th simultaneous local elections.

On the 23rd, at the members' meeting held by the People Power Party to select candidates for the standing committee chairpersons of the 22nd National Assembly's second half, Representative Yoo Eui-dong, who was elected as the candidate for the Chairperson of the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, is shaking hands with Representative Kim Jeong-jae. July 23, 2026. Photo by Hyunmin Kim

In the afternoon, the National Assembly will convene a plenary session to elect seven standing committee chairpersons (Educational, Foreign Affairs and Unification, Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs and Startups, Health and Welfare, Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Intelligence, and Gender Equality and Family Committees), which are allocated to the People Power Party. The People Power Party, who had previously boycotted parliamentary activities, returned after reaching an agreement regarding the nomination rights for the special prosecutor investigating the ballot shortage issue.

Earlier that morning, the People Power Party held a general assembly meeting and elected chairpersons for the seven standing committees. Kim Hee-jung, Song Seok-jun, Kim Sung-won, Lee Man-hee, Lee Yang-soo, and Lim Yi-ja were nominated and elected as chairperson candidates for the Education, Foreign Affairs and Unification, Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs and Startups, Health and Welfare, Intelligence, and Gender Equality and Family Committees. This followed the customary practice that committee chairperson positions are decided in consultation among three-term lawmakers.

However, the candidate for Chairperson of the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, Representative Yoo Eui-dong (four-term) was elected by just one vote over Representative Kim Jeong-jae (three-term) after a contested vote. Although Representative Kim had initially been nominated, Representative Yoo ran against this decision in protest. Representative Ahn Cheol-soo was also reportedly considering a bid for the Chairperson of the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee but withdrew after persuasion from the party leadership.

Meanwhile, although the National Assembly has resumed after 54 days, tensions are running high. The retention of supplementary investigative powers remains the most charged issue. Han Byung-do, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, stated, "It is time to put an end to intense discussions and deliberations," adding, "We will ensure that the new criminal justice system is implemented without disruptions in October."

The special prosecutor bill concerning the ballot shortage incident, which has only reached agreement on the key framework such as nomination rights and timing of the investigation, also remains unresolved. Jang Dong-hyuk, leader of the People Power Party, commented on the joint police and prosecution task force's discovery of suspicions that National Election Commission officials may have falsified voter turnout data, stating, "If turnout rates were entered falsely, was it incompetence or election fraud? We cannot dismiss this as a conspiracy theory," and emphasized, "The National Election Commission server must be included as a target in the special prosecutor's investigation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.