The ruling People Power Party has launched an emergency management committee led by five-term lawmaker Joo Ho-young, automatically depriving suspended chair Lee Jun-seok of his party leadership.

During a national committee meeting of the party on Tuesday afternoon, 511 of the 707 committee members cast a ballot over a motion to appoint former floor leader Joo as the party’s interim chief, with 463 of them voting in favor to finalize the transition of the ruling party to an emergency leadership system.

The change came quickly with the committee revising the party charter hours earlier, granting the party’s interim chief, floor leader Kweon Seong-dong, the authority to name a new emergency chief in Lee’s absence. Soon after that, Kweon announced Joo as his choice and the party members ratified a motion to appoint him before it was finalized by the national committee.

Calling a press conference after the national committee meeting, Joo said the ruling party has faced a serious crisis of confidence, adding that the top priority of the emergency committee is to address internal conflicts and divisions.

The ruling party’s move has made it impossible for chair Lee to come back even after serving a six-month ban from the party handed down last month by the party’s ethics committee over allegations that he ordered the destruction of evidence related to sexual bribery.

The 37-year-old disgraced leader said on his Facebook account later on Tuesday that he will file a court injunction in response to the party's move to adopt an emergency leadership system.