South Korea’s President Will Learn His Fate on Friday

Yoon Suk Yeol, the president of South Korea, who was impeached in December over his failed attempt to impose martial law, will learn Friday whether he will be formally removed from office or returned to power, the nation’s top court said Tuesday.

Suspense was building in South Korea as the country waited for the Constitutional Court to rule on Mr. Yoon’s fate. He has been suspended from office since the National Assembly impeached him on Dec. 14. In South Korea, the Constitutional Court decides whether an impeached official is removed permanently from office or reinstated.

Removing Mr. Yoon would require the votes of six or more of the court’s eight justices; otherwise, he will return to office.​ The court’s decision, which cannot be appealed, is a critical moment in the political upheaval​ that Mr. Yoon unleashed when he declared martial law on Dec. 3.

If ​the court removes him, Mr. Yoon will become the second president in South Korean history to leave office through impeachment. (President Park Geun-hye was the first, in 2017.) The country will quickly shift gears toward a new election; a successor must be chosen within 60 days.

If he is reinstated, South Korea’s political crisis is likely to deepen. Mr. Yoon’s attempt to impose martial law angered millions of South Koreans. Even if reinstated, he will resume his presidential duties with his ability to govern considerably weakened.

In a statement, the Constitutional Court said it would convene at 11 a.m. Friday to rule on Mr. Yoon’s case. It said it would allow TV stations to broadcast the ruling live.