People Power Party Gyeonggi governor candidate Yang Hyang-ja said in an interview on the 14th at the party's Gyeonggi Provincial Chapter in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, that this Gyeonggi governor race is an election to pick a leader who will steer "advanced provincial governance." It was a day when "semiconductors" dominated the news after the Samsung Electronics union declared a strike and the presidential policy chief's excess-profit national dividend proposal stirred controversy.
Yang said, "The province's administration over the next four years will be more advanced than anyone can imagine," adding, "If you don't know even the 'semi' of semiconductors, you can't lead Gyeonggi Province." Yang is a businessperson-turned-politician who joined Samsung Electronics as a high school graduate female employee and rose to executive director. Yang said, "We need someone who can build an industrial ecosystem and create jobs," and added, "The conflict-inducing leadership of banging the gavel without communication as judiciary committee chair is not needed in Gyeonggi Province."
Yang pledged that if elected governor, Yang would lift various regulations in northern Gyeonggi and attract industrial clusters. Yang also said a dedicated expressway connecting industrial complexes across Gyeonggi without passing through Seoul would be built and named the "semiconductor expressway." The idea is to solidify a Gyeonggi-centered semiconductor belt.
-Why should Yang Hyang-ja, not Choo Mi-ae, become Gyeonggi governor?
"Looking at candidate Choo Mi-ae's tenure as judiciary committee chair, there is no consensus or communication. There is no respect for the opposition. It is a driving force that merely bangs the mallet (gavel) and fuels conflict. By contrast, I am a driving force for resolving conflict.
Semiconductors are important, too. I contributed to the semiconductor development with which Samsung conquered the world. In Gyeonggi now, if you don't know even the 'semi' of semiconductors, you can't lead Gyeonggi Province. Over the next four years, provincial administration will be unimaginably advanced. I have experience persuading both parties to craft bills on future industries and advanced industries. What Gyeonggi needs now is someone who builds an industrial ecosystem and creates jobs. Through this, I will open an era in which provincial residents earn 100 million won per year."
-The transfer of the semiconductor cluster to Saemangeum was an issue.
"It laid bare the Democratic Party's attitude of treating industry recklessly in pursuit of votes. The Yongin industrial complex was designated a national industrial complex under the law. If this doesn't proceed properly, we can't defend our semiconductor supremacy. Saemangeum should attract and foster new industries that fit the region. To speak irresponsibly about taking over a national industrial complex project is an arrogant act."
-What pledges do you have to grow Gyeonggi's semiconductor industry?
"Building a 'semiconductor expressway.' It is similar to Taiwan's 'S-semiconductor corridor' transportation system. It means building a dedicated expressway connecting industrial complexes across Gyeonggi without passing through Seoul. Taiwan has built a vast semiconductor belt that starts in Hsinchu in the north, passes through Taichung in the center, and stretches to Kaohsiung and Tainan in the south. On top of that, they created an industry-only transportation system and roads to link the semiconductor belt directly without going through the capital, Taipei."
-What are your plans for developing northern Gyeonggi?
"I was in the northern region yesterday as well. Eighty percent of Gyeonggi's economy is concentrated in the south. I have separate plans for the northeast, the southwest, and the north. The north is a blue ocean. We must actively attract corporations. Right now, all sorts of regulations are piled onto the north. Northern residents are angry, saying, 'Only we are sacrificing.' While building industrial clusters, we need to lift surrounding regulations and create communities. It is a 'regulation-free industrial complex.' Gangwon Province has attracted a system semiconductor demonstration center and a future automobile test bed; we should benchmark this. We must link it to the defense industry and content sectors."
-What kind of politician do you want to be?
"I want to build a country where the people live well and no one can treat us carelessly. A nation of scientific and technological supremacy, one that builds a dense industrial ecosystem based on semiconductors. My goal is to succeed with these two agendas and become a politician who creates jobs that allow people to work into old age."
☞Who is Yang Hyang-ja
Born in Hwasun, South Jeolla Province, Yang graduated from Gwangju Girls' Commercial High School and joined Samsung Electronics' Giheung Research Center in 1985. Starting as a research assistant in the semiconductor memory design office, Yang served as lead researcher on the SRAM design team, principal researcher on the DRAM design team, and principal researcher on the flash design team, before becoming executive director of the flash development team in the memory business unit. In 2016, Yang entered politics by joining the Democratic Party of Korea and later served as a top member of the party. In the 21st general election, Yang defeated six-term candidate Chun Jung-bae to win a seat. After leaving the Democratic Party, Yang founded Korea's Hope and merged it with the Reform Party. In 2025, Yang left the Reform Party, joined the People Power Party, and entered its leadership as a top member.