In the last 40 years, South Korea has developed one of the world’s leading economies, growing a substantive geopolitical influence in East Asia. Simultaneously, South Korea has been perceived to be slowly democratizing following the end of authoritarian rule under Park Chung Hee in 1979 and the June Democratic Struggle in 1987. However, political tensions suddenly escalated in December 2024, when now-ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law for six hours. Upon Yoon’s declaration of martial law, South Koreans poured into the streets for the first of many impeachments. Shortly after the end of martial law, the South Korean National Assembly voted to impeach former President Yoon and former Acting President Han Duck-Soo. In the following months, South Korea and its capital, Seoul, have experienced a wave of protests and highly contentious impeachment trials at the country’s Constitutional Courts. On March 24, 2025, the Constitutional Court overturned the impeachment of Acting President Han Duck-Soo. But on April 4, 2025, former President Yoon Suk Yeol was officially and unanimously ousted from power. And within 60 days, South Koreans have to make another decision — who should their next president be? How did rising polarization impact the political environment in the months preceding the declaration of martial law? What impacts have the mass mobilization of South Koreans had on the events following the declaration? What does this mean for the future of democracy and rule of law in South Korea? How will thes events reshape South Korean domestic policy and its international relationships?

Joining the student-led International Policy Program to answer these questions and discuss South Korea’s next steps are Timothy Martin, Korea Bureau Chief at the Wall Street Journal and Karl Friedhoff, the Marshall M. Bouton Fellow for Asia Studies at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Previously, Karl worked in Seoul, South Korea as a program officer in the Public Opinion Studies Program at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies. He currently serves as a Korea Foundation-Mansfield Foundation US-South Korea Nexus Scholar and a member of the Mansfield Foundation’s Trilateral Working Group.

Moderated by Sadie Darbro, AB '26.

The event will be in-person in the IOP Living Room, with Karl Friedhoff joining us in-person, on Thursday, April 24, 2025, at 5:30 PM. Vegetarian and non-vegetarian options will be provided. Please note that this conversation will be off the record.

If you have any questions about accessibility, please contact iopevents@uchicago.edu.

Thursday, April 24, 2025

5:30 p.m. CST

Institute of Politics