[Edaily Kim Sang-yoon Reporter Hwang Byeong-seo] Approval ratings have fallen to the 30% range, and criticism of “policy incompetence” surrounding the real estate and asset markets, as well as the criminal justice system, has intensified. It has become difficult to brush off the situation with appointments that merely fill the vacancies at the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. This is the backdrop against which President Lee Jae-myung ultimately opted for a cabinet reshuffle of moderate to significant scale, replacing the ministers of six ministries at once.
This cabinet reshuffle can be summarized by the acronym “N.E.W.,” standing for “New Generation,” “Execution,” and “Wider Coalition.” The administration has refreshed the cabinet’s image with young politicians and promoted current civil servant vice ministers to ministerial positions to accelerate policy implementation. It has also sought to rebuild unity among progressive supporters by forming a broader ruling coalition that includes figures from the Basic Income Party and the Cho Kuk Innovation Party in the administration.
A high-ranking Blue House official explained this reshuffle as “an effort to tie our shoelaces again and run harder.” Rather than completely revising the direction of state affairs, the aim is to replace ministers with “players” who can run faster and stronger to deliver tangible results that the public can feel.

◇N…First Minister Born in the 1990s to Change the Face of the Cabinet
The average age of the ministerial nominees for the six ministries is 50.5. Yong Hye-in, the nominee for Minister of Gender Equality and Family, was born in 1990; if confirmed following a confirmation hearing, she will become the first minister born in the 1990s. Lee So-young, the nominee for Minister of SMEs and Startups, was born in 1985 and is 41 years old.
This is not merely a reshuffle aimed at lowering the average age. Politicians in their 30s and 40s have been assigned to areas where policy changes are rapid and the voices of those directly affected are crucial—such as digital sex crimes, work-life balance, startups, and small business owners. It is an attempt to rejuvenate not only the age of the cabinet but also its policy sensibilities.
The AI team has also been reorganized, centering on those born in the 1970s. Ha Jeong-woo, former Senior Secretary for AI and Future Planning at the Presidential Office, has been moved to the position of Vice Chair of the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy Committee, and Rep. Lee Hae-min of the Jo Kuk Innovation Party has been nominated as the new Senior Secretary for AI. Lee Won-ju, Director General of the Energy Transition Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Climate, Energy, and Environment, will serve as the tentatively named “Mega-Project Advisor.” This forms a three-pronged leadership structure: Vice Chair Ha will oversee the national AI strategy and coordination among industry, academia, and research institutes; Senior Secretary Lee will handle cross-ministerial coordination; and Advisor Lee will be responsible for executing mega-projects such as semiconductors, physical AI, and AI data centers. However, there are concerns that if duties and authorities are not clearly delineated, efforts to strengthen the control tower could instead lead to a more complex chain of command.
◇E…“Action-Oriented Vice Ministers” Appointed to Replace Koo Yoon-cheol and Kim Yoon-deok
The most striking aspect of this cabinet reshuffle is the simultaneous replacement of officials in the economy and housing portfolios. While the government touted high growth rates, public attention remained focused on inflation, housing prices, housing costs, and the asset market. Criticism has grown that the gap between macroeconomic indicators and the public’s perception of the economy led to a decline in approval ratings.
The Blue House drew a clear line, stating that these were not disciplinary personnel changes. Kang Hoon-sik, Chief of Staff to the President, said, “We did not select the new ministers based on an evaluation of their predecessors.” However, given that Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Koo Yoon-chul and Minister of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport Kim Yoon-deok—both of whom faced accusations of responsibility for the real estate crisis—were replaced simultaneously, it is difficult to avoid the interpretation that this constitutes a de facto overhaul of the economic and housing portfolios.
The successors appointed were Lee Hyung-il, First Vice Minister of Finance and Economy, and Hong Ji-seon, Second Vice Minister of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport. Rather than selecting external figures to devise new policies, the administration chose practitioners who are thoroughly familiar with existing policies and can be deployed immediately to the field. It is a move to replace the players with ones who can perform more effectively within the existing framework, rather than completely restructuring the policy landscape. Nominee Lee is an “economic policy expert” who spearheaded the introduction of a maximum oil price cap during the period of high oil prices triggered by the Middle East crisis. His first task is to link economic growth to relief from income and living expenses. Nominee Hong oversaw everything from the design to the implementation of housing policies during her tenure as Director of the Urban Housing Bureau in Gyeonggi Province. She must demonstrate the government’s “early, large-scale supply” initiative through actual permits and groundbreaking ceremonies in Seoul and the greater Seoul area.
The People Power Party criticized the promotion of a sitting vice minister, arguing that it is, in fact, “a declaration that the government will not change its economic and real estate policy direction.” They also took issue with the fact that Nominee Hong participated in the design of the “Basic Housing” policy during President Lee’s tenure as governor of Gyeonggi Province. From the opposition’s perspective, the policy continuity emphasized by the Blue House amounts to a repetition of failed policies.
Kim Seung-won, a Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker who is a former judge and serves as secretary of the National Assembly’s Legislation and Judiciary Committee, was appointed to the Ministry of Justice. With the launch of the Public Prosecution Service and the Major Crimes Investigation Agency scheduled for this October, the mandate is to stabilize the new criminal justice system and alleviate public anxiety stemming from the abolition of supplementary investigative powers. However, the appointment has been mired in controversy over being a “bulletproof appointment” from the very start. The People Power Party characterized this appointment as a “declaration of a full-scale offensive to dismiss the indictment,” noting that nominee Kim served as co-chair of a parliamentary group pushing for the dismissal of charges in President Lee’s case and spearheaded efforts to abolish the crime of breach of trust and supplementary investigative powers. The conflict of interest between stabilizing the system and defending the president against judicial risks is expected to be the main point of contention during the confirmation hearing.
For the Ministry of National Defense, former Deputy Commander of the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command Kang Shin-cheol was selected. He is a hands-on candidate with a four-star general’s background who is expected to manage the ROK-U.S. alliance while pushing forward with defense reforms, such as the integration of military academies. The Blue House stated that Nominee Kang was not involved in the December 3 state of emergency.
◇W…Broader Reach, but Leaning Left
While this round of appointments reached beyond the Democratic Party, theoverall directionleaned to the left. Representative Yong Hye-in of the Basic Income Party was nominated as Minister of Gender Equality and Family, and Representative Lee Hae-min of the Jo Kuk Innovation Party was brought in as a Senior Secretary to the Presidential Office. Rather than a unified cabinet that encompasses even the People Power Party, it resembles a broad pro-government coalition that brings together progressive-leaning opposition parties.
In particular, the selection of Nominee Yong symbolizes the shift to the left in this cabinet reshuffle. It is a strategic move to rally disaffected progressive supporters by appointing the first ministerial nominee from an opposition party and to secure allies in the National Assembly to push for reform legislation. This also opens the possibility of an experiment with a coalition cabinet in the future.
The appointment of former South Gyeongsang Governor Kim Kyung-soo as the President’s Special Advisor on Political Affairs follows the same trend. By placing a prominent figure from the pro-Moon Jae-in faction at the forefront of state affairs, the administration aims to bridge the gap between factions within the Democratic Party and the broader ruling bloc, while strengthening communication with the National Assembly and local communities. The People Power Party criticized this move as a “reward appointment” intended to appease the pro-Moon camp.