South Korea’s ruling party leader has said President Yoon Suk Yeol needed to be removed from power for trying to impose martial law in chaotic scenes earlier this week.
The move increases the pressure on the South Korean leader to quit even though members of his People Power Party late on Friday reaffirmed its formal opposition to his impeachment.
On Saturday, lawmakers will vote on the main opposition Democratic Party's motion to impeach Mr Yoon, who shocked the world late on Tuesday when he gave the military sweeping emergency powers in order to root out what he called "anti-state forces".
He rescinded the declaration about six hours later after parliament, including some members of his party, burst through barricades to vote down the decree.
The conservative PPP has vowed to oppose the impeachment bill, a position it reaffirmed on Friday night following a lengthy meeting of its lawmakers.
At least some of them would need to back it for the motion to succeed.
Acting Defence Minister Kim Seon-ho said reports that had swirled throughout Friday that there might be another attempt to impose martial law were not true.
PPP leader Han Dong-hoon had earlier added fuel to those rumours, saying there was "a high risk of extreme actions such as this emergency martial law being repeated" while Mr Yoon remained in power.
He claimed there was "credible evidence" that the president had intended to arrest and detain political leaders at Gwacheon, just south of Seoul.
He called for Yoon's "immediate suspension” ahead of the impeachment vote.
The presidential office later denied any such order to arrest prominent politicians had been given, the Yonhap news agency reported.
Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung said there was still a possibility of another spontaneous late-night declaration by Mr Yoon, though he did not offer substantive evidence.
"The situation is getting worse, there are fewer ways (for Yoon) to escape," Mr Lee told Reuters in an interview.
"That's why it's very dangerous tonight, because the only chance he has is tonight, and tomorrow morning".
Some PPP members urged Yoon to resign before the vote, saying they did not want a repeat of the 2016 impeachment of then-President Park Geun-hye, who left office following months of candlelit protests over an influence-peddling scandal.
Her downfall triggered the implosion of the party and a victory by liberals in presidential and general elections.
In scenes reminiscent of those protests, thousands of demonstrators holding candles assembled outside parliament on Friday night demanding Yoon's impeachment.
To succeed, an impeachment bill would need support from two-thirds of the 300-member assembly.
Mr Yoon's party has 108 legislators, so eight would have to side with the opposition for the bill to pass.
If parliament votes to impeach, the president is suspended from exercising his powers until an impeachment trial is held by the Constitutional Court.
The prime minister then serves as leader in an acting capacity.
