# Lee Reshuffles Cabinet, Nominates Six Ministers Including Youngest-Ever Pick > President Lee Jae-myung named six new ministerial nominees on Sunday, a reshuffle aimed at addressing falling approval ratings that includes a former World Bank economist as finance chief and a 36-year-old lawmaker as the youngest cabinet nominee in recent memory. - Source: Korea First - Canonical URL: https://koreafirst.tv/article/lee-reshuffles-cabinet-nominates-six-ministers-including-youngest-ever-pick - Author: Korea First Staff - Section: Politics - Published: 2026-08-30T13:25:44.591Z - Updated: 2026-08-30T13:25:44.591Z - Tags: Lee Jae-myung, cabinet reshuffle, Yong Hye-in, Kang Hoon-sik, Democratic Party, government appointments - Korean edition: https://koreafirst.tv/ko/article/lee-reshuffles-cabinet-nominates-six-ministers-including-youngest-ever-pick --- President Lee Jae-myung nominated six new ministers on Sunday in a cabinet reshuffle that Cheong Wa Dae framed as a response to falling approval ratings and mounting public criticism, timed ahead of a new National Assembly session and the formation of new leadership within the ruling Democratic Party. Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik announced the lineup at the presidential office. ## The New Lineup Lee Hyoung-il, a former World Bank economist born in 1971, was tapped as deputy prime minister for economic affairs and finance minister. Kang Shin-chul, a former deputy commander at the Korea-US Combined Forces Command born in 1968, was nominated as defense minister. Rep. Kim Seung-won of the Democratic Party, a former judge who passed the bar in 1996, was named justice minister nominee. Hong Jee-sun, a career bureaucrat, was picked to lead the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. Rep. Lee So-young, a Democratic Party lawmaker with a background in environmental law, was named to head the ministry overseeing small and medium enterprises and startups. Rep. Yong Hye-in, the 36-year-old leader of the Basic Income Party, was nominated for gender equality and family minister, making her the youngest name on the list. ## Filling Out the Presidential Office The reshuffle extended beyond the cabinet itself. Rep. Lee Hae-min was named senior presidential secretary for AI planning, Lee Won-ju was appointed presidential secretary for megaprojects, Kim Kyoung-soo was named special adviser for political affairs, and Ha Jung-woo was tapped as vice chair of the National AI Strategy Committee, rounding out a broader personnel shakeup around the president. ## A Mixed Political Reception Reaction split along party lines. Democratic Party leader Kim Min-seok welcomed the move as a display of competence and youthful energy, pointing to the mix of technocrats and younger lawmakers on the list. People Power Party floor leader Jeong Jeom-sig took the opposite view, calling the reshuffle a form of governance by terror that he said prioritized protecting allies from prosecution over genuine reform. ## What Analysts Expect Outside assessments were similarly divided. Political scientist Park Sang-byung called the lineup a positive fit with the administration's progressive identity, while analyst Rhee Jong-hoon was more skeptical, predicting the reshuffle's practical impact would be limited and warning that confirmation hearings for several of the nominees could reignite political conflict rather than settle it. --- Originally published by Korea First. Free to cite with attribution and a link to https://koreafirst.tv/article/lee-reshuffles-cabinet-nominates-six-ministers-including-youngest-ever-pick.