Cho Kuk, head of the Rebuilding Korea Party's Innovation Policy Institute, called the appeals court acquittal of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon a counterattack by the judiciary and said the Democratic Party leadership was responsible for it. He argued that the Democratic Party had become absorbed in an internal power struggle, missing the window to impeach Supreme Court Chief Justice Jo Hee-de and to push through judicial reform, and that the result was an opening for insurrection and far-right forces to regain ground.
Writing on Facebook on the 25th, Cho said the second-trial acquittal of Mayor Oh was "a drama with a script" and that "a counterattack by judicial politics was broadcast live and vividly across the country." He added that Oh's first-trial conviction had been overturned on appeal and that the strict judicial reckoning delivered in the first-trial insurrection ruling was collapsing one piece at a time. "The far-right camp, including the People Power Party, has gained momentum, while the democratic reform camp has lost its energy," he said.
Cho criticized not only the court rulings but also what he described as the Democratic Party's failure to respond. "The Democratic Party became immersed in an internal power struggle as it went through the debate over a merger with the Rebuilding Korea Party and the leadership contest at the August national convention," he said. "By squandering precious time, it missed the window for the Jo Hee-de impeachment and judicial reform." He added that the party had "talked about a backlash and did nothing but lay the groundwork for a counterattack by judicial politics and the revival of insurrection and far-right forces."
Cho also expressed strong displeasure at media reports that some within the Democratic Party felt relieved because the acquittal made a Seoul mayoral by-election less likely. "I nearly swore when I saw this report," he said. "Does a party that thinks it is just as well because it expects to lose a Seoul mayoral by-election have the qualifications to be the governing party?" He then asked whether "a governing party leadership that feels fortunate that there may be no election can lead the way to victory in the 2028 general election."
Cho urged the Democratic Party to carry out three tasks to overcome the crisis: internal unity, the impeachment of Chief Justice Jo, and legislation to clear away the insurrection. "A listless Democratic Party created this crisis, and it is becoming a crisis for the democratic reform camp," he said. "We must rebuild the coalition to repel insurrection that existed at the time of the presidential election."
Cho directly targeted Democratic Party leader Kim Min-seok, demanding reflection and an apology for internal party conflict. "Within the Democratic Party, it should be unity, no arguments," he said. "Leader Kim Min-seok must first bring together the strength inside the camp through reflection and an apology for divisive politics and the retreat from reform."
Cho stressed that the impeachment of Chief Justice Jo could no longer be put off. "It should have been carried out last year," he said. "The Rebuilding Korea Party announced a second impeachment motion on the 19th, based on new facts revealed in this parliamentary audit." He added, "The last chance has come. I urge the Democratic Party to make a decision."
Cho argued that legislation to clear away the insurrection must be completed by Dec. 3, the second anniversary of the Dec. 3 emergency martial law declaration. He listed as tasks the abolition of the National Court Administration and the creation of a judicial administration committee, limits on pardons and sentence reductions for insurrection and foreign aggression offenses, an explicit right to refuse unconstitutional and unlawful orders, the release of rulings related to the insurrection, and restrictions on state subsidies for parties that produced insurrectionists. "The National Assembly must bring the insurrection to a complete end through legislation, its constitutional authority," he said, warning that "if the Democratic Party talks about a backlash and hesitates without moving, the ground beneath its feet will collapse."