With Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung poised to claim the presidency, transition plans are already taking shape—without the luxury of a handover period.
Senior campaign officials say Lee is leaning toward naming Kim Min-seok, co-chair of his election committee, as his first prime minister.
Also under serious consideration is attorney Oh Kwang-soo, a longtime legal associate of Lee’s, for the role of senior secretary for civil affairs.
Lee is expected to move swiftly on key appointments—including prime minister and presidential chief of staff—immediately after his victory is certified, as South Korea’s by-election system offers no transition window.
Kim, a leading figure in the pro-Lee faction of the Democratic Party, was elected top supreme council member during the party’s August 2024 convention. He later served as director of general operations for the legislative elections before assuming the role of campaign co-chair.
Oh, a classmate of Lee’s at the Judicial Research and Training Institute (18th class), is a former high-profile prosecutor with deep roots in South Korea’s special investigations unit. A native of Namwon in North Jeolla Province, he graduated from Jeonju High School and earned a law degree from Sungkyunkwan University.
His prosecutorial career included leadership roles in the Cheongju and Daegu district prosecutors’ offices, culminating in his final post as director of the Ministry of Justice’s crime prevention policy bureau. He played a central role in several high-profile investigations, including a corruption probe involving the son of former President Kim Young-sam. Oh retired from public service in 2015.
