{"id":2204262,"date":"2024-03-14T18:17:39","date_gmt":"2024-03-14T09:17:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?p=2204262"},"modified":"2024-03-15T20:55:14","modified_gmt":"2024-03-15T11:55:14","slug":"korea-insider-han-dong-hoons-rise-from-prosecutor-to-presidential-frontrunner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2024\/03\/korea-insider-han-dong-hoons-rise-from-prosecutor-to-presidential-frontrunner\/","title":{"rendered":"Han Dong-hoon\u2019s rise from prosecutor to presidential frontrunner"},"content":{"rendered":"

Han Dong-hoon, the 50-year-old interim leader of South Korea\u2019s ruling People Power Party (PPP<\/a>), has emerged as a frontrunner<\/a> for the 2027 presidential election despite his relatively short time in politics. His close<\/a> ties to President Yoon Suk-yeol, forged through their years of working together as prosecutors and later as Yoon\u2019s first justice minister, have catapulted him to political celebrity<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Recent opinion<\/a> polls<\/a> consistently place Han as one of the top two contenders for the presidency, surpassing main opposition Democratic Party (DP) leader Lee Jae-myung.<\/p>\n

While Han has faced intense<\/a> criticism from progressive voters, particularly for his role in investigating<\/a> former justice minister Cho Kuk<\/a> during the previous Moon Jae-in administration, his most notable achievements have been tackling corruption, including major investigations into corporate scandals.<\/p>\n

Moreover, he exposed illegal political funding within the conservative party he now leads and pursued corruption cases against multiple high-level officials.<\/p>\n

Most significantly, Han played a crucial role in investigating and ultimately securing the convictions of two former conservative presidents \u2014 Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye.<\/p>\n

TACKLING CORRUPTION AND CONGLOMERATES<\/strong><\/p>\n

Han\u2019s close relationship with Yoon goes back to their shared<\/a> background as prosecutors and their collaboration on groundbreaking anti-corruption cases.<\/p>\n

Han\u2019s career as a prosecutor began<\/a> in 2001 when he joined the Seoul Central District Prosecutors\u2019 Office.<\/p>\n

In 2003, he was assigned<\/a> to the Supreme Prosecutors\u2019 Office Central Investigation Department, where he first met<\/a> Yoon. Together, they tackled high-profile economic crime cases involving conglomerates, such as SK Group\u2019s accounting<\/a> fraud<\/a>, Hyundai Motors\u2019 corruption<\/a> scandal<\/a> and Lone Star<\/a> Funds\u2019 sale of Korea Exchange Bank.<\/p>\n

From 2009 to 2011, Han served<\/a> as a senior officer<\/a> at the office of the Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs, working on legal issues under President Lee Myung-bak, whom he later investigated and ultimately helped to convict.<\/p>\n

One of Han\u2019s most notable achievements, praised by his current progressive rivals, was his collaboration<\/a> with Yoon as part of the special prosecutor team<\/a> during the 2016<\/a> corruption<\/a> scandal that led to the impeachment<\/a> and imprisonment of President Park Geun-hye.<\/p>\n

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President Yoon Suk-yeol invites Han Dong-hoon and other People Power Party leaders to the Presidential Office for luncheon | Image: Presidential Office (Jan. 29, 2024)<\/p><\/div>\n

Following the Park case, Han supported Yoon as a senior prosecutor overseeing anti-corruption and special investigations. He reportedly<\/a> played<\/a> a crucial role in uncovering evidence that implicated Lee Myung-bak as the actual owner of the auto parts maker DAS.<\/p>\n

The DAS case was one of the most high-profile political scandals in recent years. In 2020, the South Korean Supreme Court sentenced<\/a> Lee to 17 years in prison for embezzlement, concluding that he had embezzled more than $19 million (25 billion won) from DAS. The court also found that Lee had abused his power as president to benefit the company.<\/p>\n

Additionally, Han investigated multiple serving and former high-level officials, including former Supreme Court Chief Justice Yang Sung-tae<\/a>, whom he charged with abusing judicial administrative power.<\/p>\n

Most of the cases Han handled involved uncovering economic crimes committed by conglomerate leaders or pursuing corruption charges against influential conservative political figures. Besides securing the convictions of two former conservative presidents, his investigations also included exposing<\/a> the main conservative party\u2019s election slush fund activity in the early 2000s and indicting<\/a> Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Jae-yong for seeking to merge two Samsung firms to consolidate<\/a> his control of the company at the expense of shareholders, both with Yoon.<\/p>\n

This changed in 2019 when he and Yoon investigated<\/a> the family of Cho Kuk \u2014 a close aide to Moon Jae-in and his justice minister \u2014 for forging<\/a> documents related to his daughter\u2019s medical school admissions. This action led to a falling out with the progressive Moon administration.<\/p>\n

As a result, the justice minister who replaced Cho demoted<\/a> Han<\/a> \u2014 first to deputy chief prosecutor in Busan and later to a researcher role at the Judicial Research and Training Institute.<\/p>\n

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Han Dong-hoon surrounded by supporters in Goyang City on March 11, 2024 | Image: People Power Party<\/p><\/div>\n

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HAN\u2019S EVOLUTION<\/strong><\/p>\n

With the election of Yoon Suk-yeol as president in March 2022, Han saw an opportunity for redemption. Despite fierce opposition<\/a> from the DP, Yoon appointed Han as his first justice minister.<\/p>\n

As justice minister, Han\u2019s main achievement was successfully issuing an arrest motion against DP leader Lee Jae-myung to the National Assembly. The motion passed<\/a> the plenary session the second time around, but the Seoul Central District Court later rejected it.<\/p>\n

Han also focused on restoring prosecutorial powers that were curtailed during the Moon administration, pursuing these policies despite opposition pushback.<\/p>\n

Throughout his tenure, Han gradually built a support base among conservative voters through his bold<\/a> verbal responses to opposition lawmakers during parliamentary sessions, which the opposition often criticized as rude and provocative. South Korean media also frequently highlighted his<\/a> \u201celite<\/a>\u201d fashion<\/a> sense<\/a> and youth<\/a>, contributing to his growing<\/a> fandom<\/a>.<\/p>\n

As Han\u2019s name began<\/a> to appear in opinion polls as a potential presidential candidate, the PPP sought to recruit him for a political position amid party infighting<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, Han resigned<\/a> from his ministerial position and became the interim party leader, taking charge of the party\u2019s April election strategy and leveraging his political stardom.<\/p>\n

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Han Dong-hoon at a market in Wonju City, Gangwon, campaigning for district candidates | Image: People Power Party (Feb. 26, 2024)<\/p><\/div>\n

Upon taking office<\/a>, Han emphasized political reform, advocating for reducing privileges and benefits for lawmakers. He proposed policies such as renouncing immunity from arrest \u2014 a move to differentiate himself from and criticize the scandal-ridden DP leader.<\/p>\n

Han also proposed solutions to address<\/a> the country\u2019s low birth rate as the PPP\u2019s first pledge for the general elections, although experts criticized<\/a> these policies as simplistic.<\/p>\n

However, just days into his role as party leader, Han faced a severe crisis<\/a> due to the presidential office\u2019s alleged interference in party affairs.<\/p>\n

Han initially sought to demonstrate his independence from Yoon, his former partner and boss, by attempting to nominate<\/a> an electoral candidate who had previously criticized first lady Kim Keon-hee for her role in the Dior<\/a> scandal.<\/p>\n

In response, Yoon\u2019s chief of staff called for Han\u2019s resignation<\/a> from the party, which he rejected. However, Han and Yoon quickly agreed to bury the hatchet before their disagreement over the first lady could spiral out of control.<\/p>\n

Recently, Han also appears to have distanced<\/a> himself from the election nomination process, delegating significant authority to the nomination committee chair. This move is likely an effort to avoid alienating centrist voters who may be put off by his close relationship with the president<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Han has positioned himself as a younger<\/a> politician<\/a> seeking to reform the National Assembly by eliminating what he describes<\/a> as the privileged group of progressive politicians who rose to power on the back of their involvement in the 1980s democratization movement \u2014 a view that the opposition has strongly criticized.<\/p>\n

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President Yoon Suk-yeol invites Han Dong-hoon and other People Power Party leaders to the Presidential Office for luncheon | Image: Presidential Office (Jan. 29, 2024)<\/p><\/div>\n

WHY HE MATTERS NOW<\/strong><\/p>\n

Han has declared<\/a> he will not run in any constituency or on the proportional representation list in the upcoming April general elections. Nevertheless, his political influence within the conservative party remains substantial.<\/p>\n

Further, the upcoming general election is likely just a stepping stone for Han, allowing him to establish his political career by guiding the party and spearheading election strategies.<\/p>\n

While the PPP has begun to gain more support than the faltering DP, the outcome of the general election is not a make-or-break moment for Han. Opinion polls, repeated praise<\/a> from conservative lawmakers and Han\u2019s own<\/a> remarks all suggest that the former prosecutor\u2019s ultimate goal is the forthcoming presidential elections.<\/p>\n

Han will likely continue to present himself as a young leader and a corruption-busting expert to position himself for a presidential run. However, this latter characteristic may prove to be a double-edged sword.<\/p>\n

Should the Yoon administration, where Han began his political career, become embroiled in scandal and face prosecutorial investigation \u2014 a fate that has awaited every administration after their term in office \u2014 or if it is later revealed that other former prosecutors in the administration abused their power, as the opposition often alleges, Han\u2019s reputation could be tarnished.<\/p>\n

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Han Dong-hoon at a market in Wonju City, Gangwon, campaigning for district candidates | Image: People Power Party (Feb. 26, 2024)<\/p><\/div>\n

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BIO: HAN DONG-HOON (\ud55c\ub3d9\ud6c8, \u97d3\u6771\u52f3)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Age: <\/strong>50, born on April 9, 1973 in Seoul<\/p>\n

Family background:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n