The cabinet appointment announced by the presidential office on 23rd is noteworthy for the number of members with a background as National Assembly members. With the first chief of civil affairs having resigned four days after his appointment due to issues related to undisclosed real estate and loans, the inclusion of a significant number of sitting members who have already undergone public scrutiny through elections also aims to create a sense of stability.
◇An Gyu-baek, a senior figure of the Defense Committee, appointed as civilian head of defense
President Lee Jae-myung appointed An Gyu-baek, a member of the Democratic Party, as the first civilian Minister of National Defense in 64 years that day. A five-term sitting legislator, he served his military duty as a short-term conscript and finished his service as a private. Considering that since the military coup in 1961, all defense ministers have been generals, this is an unprecedented appointment. Previous governments under Roh Moo-hyun and Moon Jae-in also sought to appoint civilian defense ministers, but these efforts were thwarted due to security issues such as North Korean nuclear threats and concerns over control within military organizations.
Kang Hoon, chief of the presidential secretariat, noted that the decision for this appointment was significantly influenced by the state of emergency declared in December last year. Given that Kim Yong-hyun, the former Minister of National Defense, who is a lieutenant general, led the emergency declaration leveraging his military academy connections, the demand for appointing a civilian Minister of National Defense has increased. Kang remarked about the candidate An, saying, "As the civilian Minister of National Defense after 64 years, he will be responsible for and lead the changes in the military mobilized during the state of emergency."
◇Kang Seon-woo holds the key to the expansion and reorganization of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family
Kang Seon-woo, the candidate for Minister of Gender Equality and Family, is a two-term member of the Democratic Party who has served as the secretary of the Health and Welfare Committee and has been involved in the Gender Equality Committee. The candidate is the one who coordinated President Lee's conversation with world-renowned scholar Yuval Harari in March when the president was the Democratic Party leader. As the head of the party's international diplomatic cooperation headquarters, she organized a parliamentary discussion on "The Development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Humanity's Response." With this appointment, it is expected that the expansion and reorganization of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family will gain momentum. As President Lee has publicly stated the intent to expand it into the "Ministry of Gender Equality and Family," there are plans to push the reorganization with candidates from among female legislators.
◇Jeon Jae-soo, a three-term representative from Busan, will lead the transfer of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Arctic route initiative
Jeon Jae-soo, the candidate for Minister of Oceans and Fisheries, will lead the key elements of President Lee's campaign pledge, namely the "Arctic route development" and the "transfer of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries to Busan." A three-term member, he was the only Democratic Party candidate to survive in the last general election among the 18 districts in Busan. He is also recognized as a trusted figure in the region, enough to be elected under the Democratic Party banner in Busan, known for its strong conservative leanings. The candidate is also expected to oversee the transfer of private shipping companies, including HMM, which has been a campaign promise of President Lee and a subject of controversy.
◇Kim Seong-hwan, who created climate and energy pledges under Lee Jae-myung
Kim Seong-hwan, the candidate for Minister of Environment, is regarded as a strategist and policy expert within the Democratic Party. He demonstrated negotiating power while serving as the chair of the policy committee, including incorporating secondary batteries and electric vehicles into the tax incentives for national strategic technologies during the processing of the "K-Chips Act." Leading the party's largest member group, the Better Future, he has made his name known as a "principled faction" by voicing different perspectives on major issues. In the presidential campaign, he played a key role in creating the climate and energy policy pledges as the co-head of the policy headquarters. During the last general election, he was the chief secretary to the party leader Lee Hae-chan, contributing to the "180-seat landslide victory," and in the 22nd general election, he was part of the strategic nomination management committee that secured 171 seats.
◇Jeong Dong-young, who assisted Lee during the presidential election, symbolizes the new government’s theme of ‘inter-Korean reconciliation’
Jeong Dong-young, the candidate for Minister of Unification and a veteran of the ruling party, is a five-term lawmaker who has previously served as Minister of Unification under the Roh Moo-hyun administration. He is recognized as the architect of the Kaesong Industrial Complex and is also a figure symbolizing President Lee's declared theme of "inter-Korean reconciliation and cooperation." In June 2005, he visited North Korea as a special envoy of the president and had a private meeting with the then Chairman of the National Defense Commission, Kim Jong-il. In September 2018, during the government of Moon Jae-in, he visited North Korea as part of the special delegation for the inter-Korean summit held in Pyongyang. Notably, during the 2007 presidential election, President Lee served as the chief deputy secretary in Jeong Dong-young's campaign office. Because of this, among various experts in the ruling party, President Lee has been considered an elder to whom they seek direct advice regarding the situation in North Korea.