President Lee Jae-myung has initiated a government overhaul by replacing six cabinet ministers and some Blue House staff, while closely monitoring the situation regarding Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae's judicial nomination request.
The Blue House has requested that Chief Justice Cho quickly submit a new nominee for the Supreme Court, as he unilaterally submitted a nomination for Judge Son Bong-ki of the Daegu District Court without presenting it to the National Assembly. However, following the death of Cho's father, Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik was sent to pay respects, demonstrating the administration's effort to honor the head of the judiciary.
On August 31, Kang visited the mourning site at Pohang Seongmo Hospital to convey President Lee's condolences to the family of Cho's late father, Cho Boo-hwan. Lee Jang-hyung, the Blue House legal secretary, accompanied him. During the visit, Kang communicated that President Lee had instructed to show the utmost respect, given the Chief Justice's position as a key figure in the state.
Initially, Cho's family had requested privacy for the funeral and declined external condolences, flowers, and monetary gifts.
Analysts suggest that while President Lee is maintaining the principle of judicial nomination, he is also exercising restraint in escalating tensions with the judiciary. This comes as his approval rating has dropped into the 30% range for the first time since taking office, creating significant political pressure for the president if conflicts with the Supreme Court continue.
The Democratic Party has also decided to refrain from direct attacks on Chief Justice Cho during the mourning period. Party leader Kim Min-seok instructed the leadership to avoid mentioning Cho by name and to show maximum respect in public statements.
The party had initially planned to hold a meeting of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee to question the circumstances surrounding Cho's nomination request, but canceled the inquiry in light of the funeral.
Cho has indicated that he will provide an official response to the Blue House's nomination request this week, but the announcement may be delayed due to the recent bereavement.
The Blue House believes that the nomination process for Judge Son lacks sufficient completeness, as there was no substantial consultation with the president before Cho unilaterally submitted the nomination.
While respecting the Chief Justice's nomination authority, the Blue House maintains that the president's appointment power must also be effectively safeguarded. They argue that the Chief Justice's nomination authority cannot replace or undermine the president's appointment power, and that public demand for diversity in the Supreme Court's composition must be reflected.
Cho has two main options for proceeding: he can either nominate another candidate from the existing list of nominees, excluding Son, or he can form a new nomination committee and start the selection process from scratch.
The current list of candidates includes Judge Kim Min-ki of the Suwon High Court, Judge Park Soon-young of the Seoul High Court, and Judge Yoon Seong-sik of the Seoul High Court. The Blue House hopes to minimize the vacancy on the Supreme Court by quickly nominating one of the remaining candidates while respecting the existing committee's review results.
If Cho decides to form a new committee or outright rejects the nomination request, the vacancy on the Supreme Court could extend for a prolonged period. This situation could escalate into a constitutional conflict over the scope of the president's appointment power and the Chief Justice's nomination authority.
The decline in President Lee's approval ratings also limits the administration's options. A recent survey conducted by Realmeter, commissioned by Energy Economy News, revealed that from August 24 to 28, 38.9% of respondents approved of President Lee's performance, marking a 1.3 percentage point drop from the previous week and the seventh consecutive week of decline. This is the first time his approval rating has fallen into the 30% range since taking office, representing a record low. Disapproval ratings rose by 1.8 percentage points to 58.7%, surpassing approval ratings by 19.8 percentage points.
The margin of error for the survey is ±2.0 percentage points at a 95% confidence level, with a response rate of 3.9%. More details can be found on the website of the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission.
A ruling party official noted, "If a conflict with the Supreme Court is highlighted immediately after the cabinet reshuffle, the impact of the personnel changes could be diluted. Especially since Kim Seung-won, the newly nominated Minister of Justice, has argued for a re-nomination from the existing candidate pool, issues regarding judicial independence and presidential trials are expected to become major points of contention during the confirmation hearings."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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