Lee Hae-chan, ex-PM and party leader, passes away

Jan 26, 2026, 08:53 am

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Former Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan. / Yonhap

Former Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan died on Jan. 25 at the age of 73, South Korean officials said.

According to the Secretariat of the National Unification Advisory Council (NUAC), Lee passed away at 2:48 p.m. in Ho Chi Minh City while on an official trip to Vietnam. He had been hospitalized after his health deteriorated during the visit on Jan. 23.

Lee was diagnosed with a myocardial infarction and underwent a cardiac stent procedure, but never regained consciousness, the council said.

Born in 1952 in Cheongyang, South Chungcheong Province, Lee was first elected to the National Assembly in 1988 representing Seoul’s Gwanak district. He went on to serve seven consecutive terms as a lawmaker.

He served as leader of the Democratic United Party in 2012 and later as chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea from 2019 to 2020. Under the administration of Kim Dae-jung, Lee served as minister of education, and during the government of Roh Moo-hyun, he became the country’s 36th prime minister, the first former pro-democracy activist to hold the post.

In the most recent presidential election, Lee served as a senior advisor to the campaign of Lee Jae-myung. In October last year, he was appointed senior vice chairman of the National Unification Advisory Council.

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