Goh Kun (, born 2 January 1938) is a South Korean politician who served as the 30th and 35th prime minister of South Korea from 1997 to 1998 and again from 2003 to 2004. He was also the acting president of South Korea at the time of Roh Moo-hyun's suspension in 2004 and a former mayor of Seoul.

Early life and education

Goh Kun was born on 2 January 1938 in modern day Seoul, South Korea and attended Kyunggi High School from 1953 to 1956. In 1960, Goh earned a Bachelor of Science degree in political science from Seoul National University, where he was President of the Student Council. He returned to the university in 1968 and graduated with a master's degree in 1971, majoring in urban planning.

Career

Goh began his career in civil service in the 1960s, when he joined the Ministry of Home Affairs as a probationary officer. He was promoted through various positions, including the Governor of South Jeolla from 1975 to 1979, the Minister of Transportation from 1980 to 1981 and Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries from 1981 to 1982. In 1985, Goh was elected as a Member of the National Assembly, before being appointed the mayor of Seoul in 1988. When he refused to approve a questionable development proposal in 1990, he was removed from office. However, he returned to the position in 1998, this time by election, and served until 2002. During his tenure, he initiated a "10 million trees of life" program in the Seoul and sought more aggressive emissions standards, which led to a significant greening of the city. He served as Prime Minister of South Korea from 1997 to 1998 and from 2003 to 2004. He assumed the role of interim President following President Roh Moo-Hyun's impeachment, from 12 March 2004 until 14 May 2004, when the South Korean Constitutional Court overturned the impeachment decision and restored Roh's powers as President. He resigned from the office of Prime Minister on 24 May 2004 after refusing to comply with the President's request to replace cabinet members. He was succeeded in the office by Lee Hae-chan, who was approved on 30 June. Along with Goh, three other cabinet members were also replaced. In June 2006, Goh announced his candidacy for the presidential race. On 16 January 2007, he announced that he would no longer be a candidate for the presidential elections and that he would retire from political life. Despite his retirement, he was named head of social unity council by President Lee Myung-bak on 21 December 2009.