Kang Hoon-sik announces nomination at Cheong Wa Dae briefing room; Han would be first female PM since Han Myeong-sook in 2006

From first female CEO of a major web portal to first SME minister — a remarkable rise to the top

Cheong Wa Dae announced Sunday that President Lee Jae Myung nominated Minister of SMEs and Startups Han Sung-sook as the new prime minister candidate. Han is seen speaking at an economic ministers' meeting in March. [Yonhap]
Cheong Wa Dae announced Sunday that President Lee Jae Myung nominated Minister of SMEs and Startups Han Sung-sook as the new prime minister candidate. Han is seen speaking at an economic ministers' meeting in March. [Yonhap]

President Lee Jae Myung on Sunday nominated Minister of SMEs and Startups Han Sung-sook as the new prime minister candidate. If Han clears a National Assembly confirmation hearing and is formally appointed, she would become South Korea's first female prime minister in roughly 20 years — since Han Myeong-sook took office under President Roh Moo-hyun in 2006.

Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik announced the nomination at a briefing at Cheong Wa Dae's Chunchugwan press room, calling Han "the right person to complete the AI transformation that defines our era and to drive growth for all of South Korea, drawing on her experience as the head of an IT company and as minister of SMEs and Startups." He added that she is "an inspirational leader who started as an ordinary office worker and rose to lead one of the country's foremost digital companies."

Han, a native of Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province, began her career as a reporter at the monthly magazine PC Line before serving as head of the search business division at Empas. She joined NHN — the predecessor of Naver — in 2007, and after serving as head of the first services division and executive vice president of services, was named CEO in 2017. Over five years through 2022, she led the company's growth in AI and cloud computing and spearheaded innovative services including Naver Pay. Since taking on the role of inaugural SME minister under the Lee Jae Myung administration, she has been credited with driving startup ecosystem initiatives such as the "Startup for All" project and delivering results for small businesses and self-employed merchants.

Kang said Han "produced tangible results, including achieving record-high exports by small and medium-sized enterprises and revitalizing the startup ecosystem." He added that "combining her innovative spirit, her experience as SME minister, and the opportunity of the prime ministership, she will be able to translate the economic growth driven by the semiconductor boom and rising exports into shared prosperity for small businesses, self-employed merchants, neighborhood commercial districts and all citizens."

Han must still pass a National Assembly confirmation hearing and a full plenary vote before she can be formally appointed. Cheong Wa Dae said it plans to submit a confirmation hearing request to the Assembly shortly. Under the Confirmation Hearing Act, the Assembly must complete the hearing within 15 days of receiving the request and wrap up the full review process within 20 days. Passage of the plenary vote requires a majority of registered members to be present and a majority of those present to vote in favor.

With the Democratic Party of Korea holding a majority of Assembly seats on its own, observers say confirmation is unlikely to face major obstacles barring unforeseen circumstances. Based on the precedent set by outgoing Prime Minister Kim Min-seok — who was appointed 29 days after his nomination — Han is expected to be formally appointed around early to mid-July. Kim submitted his resignation to run in the Democratic Party of Korea's leadership election.


psj@heraldcorp.com