Kim Seung-won Abruptly Steps Down as Justice Minister Nominee, Day After President Lee's Press Conference

[Anchor]

Democratic Party Representative Kim Seung-won has voluntarily stepped down from his nomination as Minister of Justice, stating that he "failed to meet the public's standards." While the ruling bloc had previously appeared intent on pushing ahead with the appointment—such as the Democratic Party unilaterally adopting the confirmation hearing report—the atmosphere changed abruptly. Representative Kim stated that watching the president's press conference solidified his decision.

Reporter Kwon Ji-yoon reports.

[Reporter]

Representative Kim Seung-won held an unscheduled press conference yesterday morning (September 19) at 11 a.m. and stepped down from his nomination as justice minister 20 days after being nominated.

[Kim Seung-won / Democratic Party Lawmaker: I take it heavily upon myself that I fell short of the public's standards, and I will deeply reflect on my shortcomings.]

This came just one day after President Lee Jae-myung stated in a press conference the day before yesterday regarding the appointment that he would "make a cautious decision considering the public's perspective."

[Kim Seung-won / Democratic Party Lawmaker: Watching the president's press conference cemented my decision. I believed that not even a small burden should be added to an administration that must carry out reforms.]

When asked whether there had been prior communication with the party and Cheong Wa Dae, he responded as follows.

[Kim Seung-won / Democratic Party Lawmaker: What pained me the most was becoming a burden to the president.]

However, Representative Kim maintained his position that there was no wrongdoing regarding allegations of soliciting favors from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, saying, "I will not give up on the truth."

[Kim Seung-won / Democratic Party Lawmaker: I will uncover the full truth behind Han Dong-hoon's illegal leak and manipulation of confidential investigative records until the very end.]

Cheong Wa Dae stated, "We respect the nominee's decision," adding, "We understand that the nominee made the decision in order to reduce the burden on state affairs."

The Democratic Party, which just three days earlier had unilaterally adopted the confirmation hearing report describing him as "the right person for justice administration," issued a written statement saying, "We will listen with an even lower and humbler attitude."

The conservative opposition called it a "personnel catastrophe," demanding a reinvestigation into the solicitation allegations involving the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and disciplinary action against the personnel vetting team.

[Park Sung-hoon / Senior Spokesperson, People Power Party: Do not think of trying to cut ties and scapegoat (through nominee Kim Seung-won's voluntary resignation). We will thoroughly uncover the background of who the true mastermind behind this personnel catastrophe really is.]

This brings the total number of ministerial nominees who have stepped down under the Lee Jae-myung administration to five, and Representative Kim Seung-won is the first nominee to step down after a confirmation hearing report had already been adopted.

He is also the third sitting lawmaker in history to fall short of a ministerial appointment, following Representatives Kang Sun-woo and Yong Hye-in.

(Video by Shin Dong-hwan | Video Editing by Park Seon-soo)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.