Taipei: Opposition Kuomintang Legislator Weng Hsiao-ling and Presidential Office Secretary-General Pan Men-an clashed on Thursday regarding the prolonged vacancies on Taiwan's Constitutional Court, which have left the body severely understaffed for more than 18 months. The debate unfolded during a legislative committee session reviewing the 2026 budget and work plans for the Presidential Office and the National Security Council.

According to Focus Taiwan, Weng accused President Lai Ching-te of neglecting his constitutional obligations by not submitting a new list of nominees to address the ongoing shortage. The vacancies on the Constitutional Court arose after seven of the court's 15 grand justices retired on October 31, 2024. Since then, Hsieh Ming-yang has served as acting president of the Judicial Yuan and acting chief justice of the Constitutional Court, while the vacancies remain unfilled. Weng acknowledged that Lai had submitted two nomination lists, both rejected by the Legislature, where opposition parties hold a majority, on December 24, 2024, and July 25, 2025. However, she argued that the president is constitutionally obligated to continue nominating candidates until the vacancies are addressed.

Pan Men-an defended the administration's efforts, noting that Lai had already nominated 14 legal experts in two rounds, all of whom were rejected by lawmakers. Pan questioned the utility of submitting nominees only to face repeated rejections and accused legislators of subjecting respected legal scholars to political attacks during the confirmation process. Weng countered that the Constitution requires the president to continue nominating candidates despite previous rejections.

Following the committee session, Pan clarified his remarks to reporters, emphasizing that the decision to submit new nominees lies with the president. He stated that his remarks were meant to explain the process and counter claims that the administration had failed to act. "Whether or not to submit another list is the president's authority," Pan said.

The political deadlock has disrupted the court's operations. In late 2024, the Legislature amended the Constitutional Court Procedure Act, raising the minimum quorum for deliberations to 10 justices and requiring at least nine votes to declare a law unconstitutional, effectively paralyzing the court with only eight grand justices. However, the court resumed limited operations after striking down the amendments on December 19, 2025. Five of the remaining justices found the stricter quorum requirements unconstitutional, allowing the reduced bench to continue hearing cases.

Lawmakers from the KMT and Taiwan People's Party denounced the ruling and filed criminal malfeasance and abuse of power charges against the five justices. The decision exposed deep divisions within the judiciary, with three dissenting justices arguing the ruling was invalid because the court lacked the 10-member threshold required at the time to issue such a judgment. Under Taiwan's Constitution, the Constitutional Court is composed of 15 grand justices nominated by the president and confirmed by the Legislative Yuan.