[President Yoon Suk-yeol Elected] The People Who Made President Yoon Suk-yeol... Emerging as the 'Pillar of the Next Government's State Affairs'

Ahn Cheol-soo Emerges as a Key Pillar of the Next Joint Government
Close Aides Involved in Political Participation and Unification Take Center Stage
Advisory Roles of Kim Han-gil and Kim Byung-joon Also Draw Attention

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is performing an uppercut ceremony for supporters in front of the People Power Party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 10th. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol has habitually emphasized that he "has no debts" regarding his entry into politics. This is because he won the presidential election just nine months after declaring his political participation in June last year. What made Yoon, who was the standard-bearer against Moon Jae-in, the new captain of the Republic of Korea was that he formed a ‘one team’.

◆One Team People Power Party = One of the most decisive turning points in this presidential election was the unification of candidates between President-elect Yoon and Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People Power Party. Just before early voting, Ahn suddenly declared his support for Yoon and withdrew from the race, allowing the conservative camp to unify their candidates. Furthermore, Yoon was able to attract votes from the moderate camp and establish himself as a symbol of unity.

Immediately after confirming victory in the nail-biting election, President-elect Yoon was with Ahn. This officially confirmed that the next government would be operated as a joint government with Ahn.

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is shaking hands with Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People Party, at the People Power Party's vote counting situation room set up at the National Assembly Library in Yeouido, Seoul on the 10th. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

In addition, it was also notable that lawmakers such as Hong Joon-pyo and Yoo Seung-min, who had clashed during the primary, joined the campaign after the primary and contributed to forming the one team. After the fiercely contested party primary, Hong and Yoo lent their support to the presidential election in the final stages.

Lawmakers who had identified themselves as part of the Yoon Seok-yeol faction even before Yoon joined the People Power Party played active roles both during the party primary and the presidential election. Among the closest aides were lawmakers Kwon Seong-dong, Jang Je-won, and Yoon Han-hong, who were considered core members. These key associates of President-elect Yoon held important party positions in the campaign and the election committee. In particular, Lawmaker Jang Je-won acted as the plenipotentiary agent during the unification process with Ahn Cheol-soo, the presidential candidate of the People’s Party, overseeing practical negotiations. Chung Jin-suk, the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly from the People Power Party, also played a pivotal role from the primary through the presidential election, including securing votes from the Chungcheong region.

Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, also played an all-around role in the presidential election. He proposed various plans known as the ‘silk pouch.’ He devised the ‘passion train’ that utilized a train for the election campaign and actively targeted Honam, a region where the party was weak, prominently promoting the image of ‘unity.’ Additionally, he proposed a generational encirclement strategy combining the 20s and 30s generations with those over 60 as the party’s presidential election strategy, presenting a new coalition of election generations.

Yoo Sang-beom, a lawmaker who worked with President-elect Yoon in the special investigation unit during their prosecution days, served as the head of the party’s legal support team. He led the litigation battle in this unprecedentedly intense election filled with lawsuits and accusations.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

◆People Power Party Election Headquarters = After experiencing turmoil such as the disbandment of the People Power Party’s presidential election committee, the election campaign was stably managed largely due to the role of the election headquarters. The person responsible for stabilizing the election headquarters in crisis was Kwon Young-se, the general director of the election headquarters.

Won Hee-ryong, who was a competitor in the party primary and served as the head of the policy headquarters in the election committee and headquarters, also made a significant contribution to the candidate’s victory. Won not only oversaw the policy aspects but also took the lead as the top lecturer on the Daejang-dong scandal, spearheading the verification process of Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate. Won is also a junior alumnus of President-elect Yoon.

Within the party, lawmakers Kim Eun-hye, who served as the head of the public relations team, and Lee Yang-su, who was the chief spokesperson, also played active roles overseeing the election headquarters’ messaging. Lawmaker Lee Yong, former coach of the national bobsleigh and skeleton team at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, served as the chief of staff from August last year, closely assisting President-elect Yoon. Former lawmaker Oh Shin-hwan served as the deputy head of the situation room, accompanying the president-elect on-site schedules and managing messaging.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

◆Policy Line = Regarding policy, former Vice Minister of Strategy and Finance and Budget Office Director Lee Seok-jun laid the basic framework from the early stages of the campaign.

In particular, in the field of foreign affairs and security, Professor Kim Sung-han of Korea University Graduate School of International Studies, who served as the second vice minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, played a central role. Additionally, Park Jin, who was a competitor in the primary and chaired the Global Vision Committee, and Lawmaker Cho Tae-yong, a former first vice minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also led foreign affairs and security. In the defense sector, Kim Yong-hyun, a senior alumnus of President-elect Yoon from high school and former head of operations at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, played a role. Kim contributed to recruiting a large number of retired generals.

Regarding economic policy, Professor Kim So-young of Seoul National University’s Department of Economics, Professor Kim Kyung-hwan of Sogang University’s Department of Economics, Chu Kyung-ho, the People Power Party’s floor leader, and Lawmaker Yoon Chang-hyun played roles. Additionally, Professor Joo Han-kyu of Seoul National University’s Department of Nuclear Engineering helped with the anti-nuclear power policy, and Professor Kim Chang-kyung of Hanyang University’s Department of Science and Technology Policy, a former vice minister of the Ministry of Education and Science, assisted with the digital platform government pledge.

Welfare policy was led by Professor Ahn Sang-hoon of Seoul National University’s Department of Social Welfare and Professor Kim Hyun-sook of Soongsil University’s Department of Economics, who served as the presidential secretary for employment and welfare. Education policy was primarily handled by Professor Na Seung-il of Seoul National University’s Department of Agricultural Education, a former vice minister of the Ministry of Education.

◆Advisory Group = Besides the publicly known key figures with official titles, there was also a group that advised the president-elect behind the scenes. Previously, during his candidacy, President-elect Yoon stated in a media interview that he listens to what he needs to know through about 20 people with whom he communicates regularly. Although the list of personnel from whom President-elect Yoon directly seeks advice has not been disclosed, it is believed in political circles that former New Era Preparation Committee Chairman Kim Han-gil and former standing election committee chairman Kim Byung-joon were included. When President-elect Yoon exposed external pressure during the 2013 National Intelligence Service comment manipulation investigation, Kim Han-gil was the opposition party leader. Kim was actively supportive of Yoon’s defense, and their relationship continued thereafter. Especially, as representative anti-Moon (非文) figures, Kim Han-gil and Yoon emerged as leaders of the anti-Moon (反文) faction and are known to have provided advice.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Former Chairman Kim Byung-joon is also known to have shared considerable consensus on the direction of state governance. He exchanged opinions on the role and operation of the state, its relationship with the market, and the responsible minister system.

Additionally, Jang Ye-chan, head of the youth headquarters who has been actively involved in youth issues since President-elect Yoon’s political debut, is also considered a core figure. Woo Seung-bong, head of the public relations team, Choi Ji-hyun, chief deputy spokesperson, Kang Myung-gu, former chairman of the Yeongdeungpo Gap district of the Liberty Korea Party who managed schedules, and Park Geon-chan, former chief of the Gyeongbuk Police Agency who served as the head of security, also played frontline roles.

Although they did not directly influence the presidential victory, prosecutors Han Dong-hoon (Deputy Director of the Judicial Research and Training Institute) and Yoon Dae-jin (Director of Planning at the Judicial Research and Training Institute), classified as part of the ‘Yoon Seok-yeol faction,’ are expected to be appointed to senior positions in the prosecution in the next government.

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