Throughout 2019, conservative activists protested the ruling liberal Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and the Moon Jae-in administration for multiple reasons.

[1][2] On 16 December 2019, the Liberty Korea Party, Korea's mainstream conservative party, held "The contest to condemn the revision of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials Act and the Election Act" (Korean: 공수처법·선거법 날치기 저지 규탄대회), which included provisions shifting powers from prosecutors to the police and was being voted on that day.

LKP leader Hwang Kyo-ahn, who was present at the rally, reportedly encouraged the demonstrators, saying "Your rage will impact the National Assembly ... You've already won a victory".

[6][2] Speaker Moon Hee-sang scrapped the vote and denounced the rally, stating "Today, supporters of a certain group almost violated the National Assembly, something that must never happen.

I am ashamed about the extreme political confrontation, where politicians only treat other parties as enemies and oppose everything, instead of having talks and trying to find a compromise"[1] Two years later, South Korean media compared the incident to the 2021 United States Capitol attack.