While President-elect Park is lining up picks for her government, the nominee handpicked by Park as the next Constitutional Court chief has withdrawn his candidacy.

In a press release Wednesday, Lee Dong-heub apologized to the people and said he was stepping down to allow for what he called a "smooth running of state affairs."

Lee has been under mounting pressure to withdraw since his confirmation hearings last month.

He's been shadowed by allegations that he used hundreds of thousands of dollars in public funds during his six-year term as a justice for the top court, along with other allegations of ethical lapses.

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