Woo was born in Seoul in 1957 and studied civil engineering at Yonsei University,[3] later receiving a master's degree in environmental studies from the same university.[4] He was arrested in 1981 and sentenced to three years of penal labor under the Chun Doo-hwan regime for taking part in protests demanding Chun's resignation, then released in 1984.[3]
As an assemblyman, Woo has been active in promoting labor rights.[4] He is a member of the Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee.[8] In 2007, he presided over the unanimous approval of a bill to allow academics at private universities to organize unions.[9] Following his re-entry to the Assembly, in 2013 he established the Committee for Improving the Standing of the Have-Nots or "Euljiro Committee", a group that mediates industrial disputes and works to protect workers' rights. He has served as the Committee's chairman since its founding.[4][10]
Woo has served in a number of important positions in the Democratic Party and its predecessors, including deputy floor leader and deputy secretary general.[4] He is seen as independent of the party's pro–Roh Moo-hyun and Jeolla factions.[11] Woo also acted as opposition administrator of the special hearing committee to vet the appointment of Hwang Kyo-ahn as Prime Minister in May–June 2015, with the Dong-A Ilbo describing him at this time as having a "strong, steely character".[12]
Woo is notable for leading anti-Japanese campaigns, and has been described by rivals as a "Japan hawk." One notable campaign was a two-week hunger strike he undertook in July 2023 in protest of Japan's plan to discard wastewater from the quake-wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant. He also opposed the International Atomic Energy Agency's verdict which found that Japan's plan was safe.[13]
On 16 May 2024, Woo was elected Speaker of the 22nd South Korean National Assembly.[14] He formally assumed the position after being officially elected on 5 June 2024.[13]
As speaker, Woo has presided over several important occasions such as the revocation by the National Assembly of the declaration of martial law by President Yoon Suk Yeol on 4 December 2024, during which he climbed a fence to get inside the National Assembly Proceeding Hall and refused to forego standard procedures despite soldiers threatening to enter the session hall,[15] and the passage of the impeachment motion against Yoon on 14 December.[16] Opinion polling held by Gallup at the time also found him emerging as the most trusted politician in South Korea for his actions during martial law and the subsequent impeachment, with a rating of 56%.[17]
On the eve of the impeachment of acting president Han Duck-soo, Woo ruled that Han can be impeached by a simple majority due to his status as a cabinet minister, paving the way for Han to be impeached by 192 MPs on 27 December 2024.[18]
Woo considers pro-democracy activist and former Democratic United Party senior adviser Kim Geun-tae as his political mentor and is known to wear a lime-green tie given to him by Kim on matters of important significance.[16]
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