Controversy is spreading over Minister of Gender Equality and Family nominee Yong Hye-in holding a concurrent seat as a lawmaker. As Yong has remained silent, even some in the ruling party say it would be difficult to hold both posts.
Park Sun-won, a Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party of Korea, appeared on YTN radio on the 1st and said, "In the case of a proportional representative seat, the next in line has already been registered with the election commission," adding, "When there is a next in line, it is only natural to resign from the proportional representative seat."
Park said, "A proportional representative becomes a lawmaker to represent a certain occupation or field," adding, "If one has become a Minister of Gender Equality and Family nominee who can make use of their expertise and strengths, they should seriously consider resigning their seat, and public opinion seems to think so as well."
The day before, Supreme Council member Jeon Yong-gi of the Democratic Party of Korea also said, "We need to pay more attention to public expectations." Democratic Party Spokesperson Shin Hyun-young also said, "We cannot agree with Yong's view of holding both a parliamentary seat and a ministerial post," adding, "In the bold appointment of a Minister symbolizing the young generation, that judgment can only be seen as excessive favoritism and greed. Choose one between the ministerial post and the parliamentary seat, and focus on it."
In the Cabinet reshuffle on the 30th, Yong, a surprise pick, was born in 1990 and is the youngest-ever Minister nominee. The choice was seen as a card to court the "2030" female vote, which has recently been slipping for President Lee Jae-myung and the ruling party. In a Realmeter poll released on the 31st, Lee's approval among women in their 20s was 31.4%, and among women in their 30s it was 41.2%.
But once the lid was lifted, the expected response did not emerge. Even in progressive circles and women's groups, a "not qualified" verdict is being handed down. Former Justice Party lawmaker Jang Hye-young said, "We must address the problem of appointing as a Minister a lawmaker who twice wore the badge through a satellite party that destroyed democracy and deceived the public, and who has never once apologized to the people."
Former Democratic Party emergency committee chair Park Ji-hyun also said, "If you want to talk about equality, you must first put down special treatment," adding, "I have strongly argued that more young people and women should enter politics. But youth politics is not about giving privileges to young people who have served expedients and vested interests. Youth politics is about enabling anyone to compete on merit from the same starting line."
Women's groups feel the same. The Korean Women's Political Network commented, "How can someone who has led the call to completely abolish the supplementary investigation authority that sexual violence victims and those vulnerable under the law tearfully pleaded for ensure the safety rights of the weak?" adding, "Yong Hye-in falls short of the qualifications for Minister."
With the expected reaction not materializing, the ruling camp appears flustered. A ruling camp official said, "As nominee Yong expressed an intention to concurrently serve as a lawmaker, the controversy is growing in an unexpected direction," adding, "The nominee must find a breakthrough on their own."
Meanwhile, on the way to work that day, nominee Yong did not answer reporters' questions. Oh Jun-ho, former leader of the Basic Income Party to which Yong belongs, issued a statement that day, saying, "If Rep. Yong resigns, a Democratic Party of Korea candidate, who is next in line on the Democratic Alliance list, will succeed to the seat, and the Basic Income Party will go from one seat to zero. When a lawmaker from a major party joins the Cabinet, even if they give up their seat, that party suffers no loss, but if a one-seat minor party does the same, it gets expelled from the National Assembly," adding, "Is it really fair to mechanically apply the customs of major parties to minor parties?"
Oh said, "The law defines the concurrent holding of a ministerial post and a parliamentary seat as legal," adding, "Nevertheless, if, under customs that favor only major parties, minor parties are forced to give up their parliamentary status to join the government, what is the purpose of the law's existence?"
The evaluation of the president's job performance was conducted using an automated response method via wireless calls with 2,509 voters aged 18 or older. The response rate was 3.9%, and the margin of error was ±2.0 percentage points at a 95% confidence level. For details, visit the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission website.