Vote to impeach South Korean president in limbo after ruling party members leave chamber

SEOUL, South Korea — A vote to impeach South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol over his brief imposition of martial law is in limbo. Members of his party walked out, and the opposition called on them to return and vote.

While lawmakers debate the motion, introduced by the main opposition Democratic Party, only a single member of Yoon’s People Power Party (PPP) remains in his seat while a couple of others return during voting, casting doubt over whether the measure would have enough votes to pass.

The lull was an odd counterpoint to the shouts and cursing in parliament that had preceded the vote, held four days after Yoon plunged Asia’s fourth-largest economy and key US military ally into its greatest political crisis in decades, threatening to shatter South Korea’s reputation as a democratic success story.

The opposition needs at least eight votes from the PPP to reach the needed two-thirds majority. As PPP lawmakers depart after casting votes on a separate motion to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the first lady, some people shout and curse them.