Seo Jeong-wook Challenges Choo Mi-ae: 'Would You Impeach President Lee Jae-myung Too?'
Democratic Party lawmaker Seo Jeong-wook took direct aim at Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae, asking, "Could you impeach President Lee Jae-myung too?"
Seo recently made remarks to the effect that a governor like Choo Mi-ae—who led the impeachments of former presidents Roh Moo-hyun, Park Geun-hye, and Yoon Suk-yeol—could hardly refrain from doing the same to President Lee Jae-myung. His point was that the logic still applies to a figure who once stood at the forefront of impeachment politics while in the opposition, even now that she has joined the ruling camp. The remarks are effectively read as a political warning that "the yardstick of impeachment can come back around to anyone each time power changes hands."
Why the Remark Came Now
The comment comes as an extension of ongoing internal rifts within the Democratic Party. President Lee recently criticized those within his own camp, saying they "demand big positions despite lacking the capability," prompting interpretations that some factions classified as hard-liners had become the direct targets of his rebuke. Governor Choo made history by becoming the first female head of a metropolitan provincial government, but she has kept her distance from the party mainstream—criticizing the president over his defense of Kim Ji-yong with the pointed remark that she "went expecting a famous restaurant but found a shabby diner."
Lawmaker Park Ji-won is also reported to have distanced himself, saying, "What has Choo Mi-ae ever done so well?"—a sign that wariness toward Governor Choo within the Democratic Party is considerable. Meanwhile, Seo Jeong-wook has stood at the center of controversy with pointed remarks about both government and opposition figures, criticizing former chairman Hong Joon-pyo's 'surrender to the left' while saying he "has a good chance of becoming prime minister." His latest remark is interpreted as combining a principled criticism of 'impeachment-abuse politics' with an effort to check a rival within the party.
The Political Implications of Flipping the 'Logic of Impeachment'
The core lies in the structure of his argument. The observation that forces which once led impeachments cannot be free from the impeachment yardstick once they hold power is also a reflection on the reality that impeachment has been consumed as a weapon of political infighting rather than a legal judgment. Indeed, as the trial over former President Yoon Suk-yeol's election-nullification sentence proceeds, criticism has persistently been raised that both ruling and opposition camps have exploited impeachment and investigations as tools of political mobilization.
The trajectory of President Lee's approval rating also shapes the weight of this remark. In a Real Meter poll, the president's job approval fell for a second consecutive week to 35.2 percent. With approval in the mid-30 percent range, an acceleration of defections by the party's non-mainstream could only deepen concerns about the stability of his administration. Seo's remark has pinpointed this vulnerability precisely.
Rifts Inside the Ruling Party and Variables Ahead
The Democratic Party has launched an election countermeasure committee under the banner of 'normalizing the country,' moving into its post-election political agenda. Yet disagreements persist over the pace of prosecutorial reform, including the president's stance that the timing and procedures for a special prosecutor into fabricated indictments should be "judged after consultation with the ruling party." Tensions between the party and the government run in multiple directions: Gwangju High Prosecutors' Office chief Lim Eun-jung has been named the top audit target of the High-ranking Officials Investigation Agency, and the president has issued public warnings to his own camp.
In this context, Seo's remark is seen less as a mere outburst than as a signal that fractures within the ruling party have surfaced openly. Coupled with opposition attacks—such as the golf controversy on the day of a commercial building collapse in Daegu and the clash with lawmaker Lee Jin-sook over a visit to his parents' graves—the voices of critical forces within the ruling camp could grow louder.
Looking ahead, party unity will become as important a task for President Lee as defending his approval ratings. As shown by the message relayed by former lawmaker Song Young-gil that First Lady Kwon Yang-sook said, "Please protect President Lee," concerns among elders of the ruling camp have already come to the surface. Seo's question—'Could you impeach this president too?'—prompts reflection on past impeachment politics, while also serving as a test of how the ruling party in its first year in power will manage challenges from within and without.
