Democratic Party Appoints Rep. Han Jeung-ae as Secretary-General and Rep. Kwon Chil-seung as Policy Committee Chair

Democratic Party Leader Kim Min-seok has appointed four-term lawmaker Han Jeung-ae (Gangseo-gu Byung, Seoul) as the new Secretary-General and three-term lawmaker Kwon Chil-seung (Hwaseong-gu Byung, Gyeonggi Province) as the new Policy Committee Chair.

Park Sung-jun, Senior Spokesperson for the Democratic Party, announced these appointments while meeting with reporters today after Leader Kim paid his respects at the May 18 National Cemetery in Gwangju.

Secretary-General Han was previously appointed as Policy Committee Chair under the preceding leadership of Chung Cheong-rae and has been holding that position until now, while Policy Committee Chair Kwon served as Minister of SMEs and Startups during the Moon Jae-in administration.

As a result, some interpret this personnel reshuffle as a balanced appointment aimed at healing internal party divisions stemming from intense competition during the national convention.

Regarding the appointment of Secretary-General Han, Senior Spokesperson Park stated, "This is an appointment prioritizing capability," adding, "She served as Minister of Environment (under the Moon Jae-in administration) and has proven her ability to manage party affairs through her long tenure as Policy Committee Chair."

Policy Committee Chair Kwon is classified as a figure with a relatively weak factional color, having served as the party's senior spokesperson for one year starting in March 2023 during the first-term leadership of then-Leader Lee Jae-myung.

Explaining the appointment of Policy Committee Chair Kwon, Senior Spokesperson Park noted, "While serving as Minister of SMEs and Startups, he acquired the content necessary to support currently needed megaprojects, and his capabilities have been proven."

In addition, Leader Kim appointed freshman lawmaker Kim Nam-jun (Gyeyang-gu Eul, Incheon) as Public Relations Committee Chair, and three-term lawmaker Shin Jung-hoon (Naju-Hwasun, Jeollanam-do) as Good Local Government Committee Chair.

Freshman lawmakers Cho Kye-won (Yeosu-gu Eul, Jeollanam-do) and Lee Yong-woo (Seo-gu Eul, Incheon), along with former lawmaker Shin Hyun-young, were appointed as spokespersons.

Han Woong-hyun, former Public Relations Committee Chair of the Democratic Party, will head the newly established "Democratic Party TV Preparation" Task Force (TF).

Senior Spokesperson Park said, "We previously had a communication platform called 'Deli Democratic,' but Leader Kim proposed launching 'Democratic Party TV' to not only deliver prompt information to the public and party members but also to communicate with them."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.