Jin Jeong-seok Elected as National Assembly Deputy Speaker for Opposition Party... 1 Year and 2 Months After Parliamentary Organization Formation (Update)

On the 31st, during the secret ballot for the election of the National Assembly Vice Speaker for the second half of the year held at the plenary session of the National Assembly, Jeong Jin-seok, a member of the People Power Party who was the sole candidate, is greeting lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] Jeong Jin-seok, a member of the People Power Party, was elected as the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly on the 31st.

The National Assembly held a plenary session that day and, as a result of a secret ballot, 231 out of 245 members present voted in favor.

The Deputy Speaker position allocated to the opposition party, which had been vacant for over a year due to conflicts between the ruling and opposition parties during the negotiation process for organizing the Assembly, was filled this time. The National Assembly is supposed to have two Deputy Speakers from both the ruling and opposition parties along with the Speaker, but the position had been vacant following disputes over which side would chair the Legislation and Judiciary Committee during last year's negotiation process. Previously, the ruling and opposition parties concluded the distribution of standing committees through negotiations between floor leaders, limiting the Legislation and Judiciary Committee's authority to review the system and organization, and agreed that the opposition party would take charge of the committee from the second half of the year.

Until now, the leadership consisted only of Speaker Park Byeong-seok and Deputy Speaker Kim Sang-hee from the Democratic Party of Korea.

Jeong, who was elected as Deputy Speaker this time, is a five-term lawmaker with a background in journalism and has served as Secretary General of the National Assembly and Senior Secretary for Political Affairs at the Blue House.

Deputy Speaker Jeong said, "Since my days as a political reporter, the National Assembly has been my lifelong workplace," and added, "The customs and norms of the National Assembly, where ruling and opposition members sit face-to-face to reach conclusions, must be preserved more dearly than laws." He continued, "I believe parliamentary democracy is not about majority rule but about dialogue and compromise."

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