President Lee Narrows Candidates for Next Justice Minister to Former Prosecutors Yang Bunam and Park Gyuntaek

Former high prosecutors’ office chiefs, pro-Lee lawmakers from Honam and first-term legislators
Final nomination expected soon
Candidates reconsidered after Kim Seungwon’s withdrawal
Justice minister post vacant for nearly two months
Task of establishing the Prosecution Service and SCIA smoothly

President Lee Jaemyung is reportedly weighing his final choice after narrowing the candidates for the next justice minister to two Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers, Yang Bunam and Park Gyuntaek. Both are former high-ranking prosecutors and members of the pro-Lee faction who were involved in handling Lee’s legal risks when he was party leader. With the new criminal justice system needing to be established swiftly following the abolition of the Prosecutors’ Office and the launch of the Prosecution Service and the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency (SCIA), a successor is expected to be nominated soon.

President Lee Jae Myung speaks at the second plenary meeting of the Regulatory Rationalization Committee at the Blue House on Oct. 23, 2026. Yonhap News, Oct. 23, 2026.

According to the Blue House on Oct. 25, Lee is making a final decision between lawmakers Park and Yang as candidates for the next justice minister. After former nominee Kim Seungwon withdrew his candidacy last month, the Blue House resumed its search and eventually narrowed the shortlist to Park and Yang.

One notable aspect of the selection is that both candidates have held senior positions in the prosecution service. In the Aug. 30 Cabinet reshuffle, Lee chose lawmaker Kim Seungwon, a former judge, but has now turned again to candidates with prosecutorial backgrounds. This is seen as reflecting a decision to appoint someone with an understanding of the prosecution service and experience in justice administration, now that the institutional framework for prosecution reform, including the separation of investigations and prosecutions, has been established.

Park graduated from Gwangju Daedong High School and Seoul National University’s College of Law, and entered the legal profession after completing the 21st class of the Judicial Research and Training Institute. He served as director of the Ministry of Justice’s Prosecution Bureau, chief of the Gwangju High Prosecutors’ Office and president of the Judicial Research and Training Institute, among other roles. As the first director of the Prosecution Bureau under the Moon Jae-in administration, he handled a broad range of prosecution administration, including personnel affairs and organizational management. He also worked for the Presidential Committee on Judicial Reform under the Roh Moo-hyun administration. After joining the Democratic Party of Korea in 2022, he served as Lee’s special legal adviser when Lee was party leader and acted as a defense attorney in cases including Baekhyeon-dong, Seongnam FC and the remittance to North Korea. He won a seat in Gwangju’s Gwangsan A constituency in the last general election.

Yang, who is from Damyang, South Jeolla Province, graduated from Chonnam National University’s College of Law and completed the 22nd class of the Judicial Research and Training Institute. He served as head of the Criminal Affairs Department at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, chief of the Gwangju District Prosecutors’ Office, chief of the Uijeongbu District Prosecutors’ Office and chief of the Busan High Prosecutors’ Office. As a prosecutor, he was involved in major investigations, including the Daegu subway arson attack and the Gangwon Land hiring corruption case. In 2022, when Lee was leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, Yang was appointed party legal affairs committee chair along with former nominee Kim Seungwon, and oversaw the party’s legal response to investigations and trials involving Lee. He won a seat in Gwangju’s Seo B constituency in the last general election and currently remains chair of the party’s Legal Affairs Committee.

The two candidates share experience leading prosecution organizations and political ties to Lee. Park was involved in prosecution administration and institutional reform through roles including director of the Ministry of Justice’s Prosecution Bureau and president of the Judicial Research and Training Institute. Yang, by contrast, built his career in front-line prosecutors’ offices, leading district and high prosecutors’ offices and investigating major cases.

The justice minister appointment had been stalled for nearly two months since late August, when former minister Jeong Seongho stepped down for health reasons. Lee initially nominated lawmaker Kim Seungwon, but after Kim withdrew his candidacy on Sept. 19 amid allegations that he had sought favors related to the approval of a new drug’s clinical trial, the selection process restarted from scratch. In the meantime, the Prosecutors’ Office was abolished on Oct. 2, and the Prosecution Service and the SCIA were launched, while the Ministry of Justice has been operating with Vice Minister Lee Jinsu as acting minister.

The new minister will face tasks including stabilizing the Prosecution Service, revising follow-up legislation in line with the separation of investigations and prosecutions, and coordinating work among relevant agencies. Lee recently entered the debate over the political neutrality of the heads of the Prosecution Service and the SCIA attending Cabinet meetings, drawing attention to the new minister’s role and authority to direct and supervise them.

In particular, because both candidates were involved in handling Lee’s legal risks, the question of withdrawing indictments in cases involving Lee and ways to ensure the political neutrality of investigative and prosecutorial agencies could become key issues at their National Assembly confirmation hearings. The opposition may also object to the appointment of an ally of the president as justice minister.

Meanwhile, the Blue House is said to be carefully reviewing the vetting process and shifts in public opinion following Kim’s withdrawal. Lee’s final choice is expected both to fill the prolonged vacancy at the helm of the Ministry of Justice and to offer an indication of how the new criminal justice system will operate.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.