Yoon to Reshuffle Cabinet with Moderate or Greater Changes as Early as the 4th, Appointing Bureaucrats and Experts

Stabilizing the Turbulent Cabinet and Accelerating the Three Major Reforms

President Yoon Suk-yeol is set to carry out a large-scale cabinet reshuffle ahead of next year's general election. Politicians are expected to be excluded from the pool of candidates, with bureaucrats and experts likely to fill the cabinet positions.

According to the presidential office and ruling party on the 3rd, President Yoon is expected to announce the reshuffle as early as the 4th. Among the 19 ministries including the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Ministry of SMEs and Startups, Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Ministry of Science and ICT, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, and Ministry of Employment and Labor, at least seven ministers are likely to be replaced.

This move is interpreted as an effort to stabilize the unsettled cabinet following the failure to secure the 2030 World Expo and to accelerate the three major reforms in education, labor, and pensions.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In the economic sector, Choo Kyung-ho, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, is reportedly to be succeeded by Choi Sang-mok, a career economic bureaucrat and former senior secretary for economic affairs at the presidential office.

For the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, former Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) President Park Sang-woo and Shim Kyo-eon, President of the Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements, are being considered as successors to Minister Won Hee-ryong. For the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, where Minister Lee Young has confirmed his candidacy for the general election, Professor Yoo Byung-joon of Seoul National University’s Business School and Min Byung-joo, President of the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology, are emerging as candidates.

For the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, former Vice Minister Song Sang-geun and Professor Kim In-hyun of Korea University Law School are being discussed as successors to Minister Cho Seung-hwan. For the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Senior Research Fellow Song Mi-ryeong of the Korea Rural Economic Institute and former Second Vice Minister Woo Tae-hee are mentioned as potential successors to Ministers Jeong Hwang-geun and Bang Moon-kyu, respectively.

For the Ministry of Employment and Labor, Professor Cho Jun-mo of Sungkyunkwan University’s Department of Economics, who has researched labor economics, is being considered, while for the Ministry of Science and ICT, President Lee Yong-hoon of Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) and President Yoo Ji-sang of Kwangwoon University are mentioned.

There are also talks that Foreign Minister Park Jin could be included in the reshuffle, due to accountability issues following the defeat in the bid for the 2030 World Expo.

Regarding the Ministry of Justice, with Minister Han Dong-hoon likely to run in the general election, a one-point appointment could take place around the end of the year or early next year. Candidates under consideration include Kim Hong-il, Chairperson of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission, and former Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office officials Gil Tae-gi and Park Sung-jae.

Depending on the speed of the appointment process, announcements may be made sequentially, including later this week. It is reported that some personnel have been replaced during the final verification process.

The vacant position of Chairman of the Korea Communications Commission is also expected to be filled early. Candidates include legal professionals such as Lee Sang-in, Vice Chairman of the Korea Communications Commission, and Kim Hu-gon, former Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office chief and representative lawyer of law firm Robex, as well as media figures like former MBC President Kim Jang-gyeom and former Daejeon MBC President Lee Jin-sook.

Among vice-ministerial level officials, Jang Mi-ran, Second Vice Minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, is being considered to run in the general election either in the Gyeonggi Osan district, the constituency of Democratic Party lawmaker Ahn Min-seok, or as a proportional representative. Accordingly, former Vice President of the Korea Football Association Lee Young-pyo is reported to have undergone the successor verification process. Successor appointments for officials such as Jang Sang-yoon, appointed as Senior Secretary for Social Affairs at the presidential office and former Vice Minister of Education, are also expected soon.