[22nd Rising Star](16) Yeo's Youngest Kim Yong-tae "Leading Efforts to Eliminate Discrimination in Northern Gyeonggi"

Joining Bareun Party Right After Officer Discharge to Start Political Career
"Will Also Strive for Green Diplomacy Addressing Climate Change"

Editor's NoteThere are 131 first-term lawmakers entering the 22nd National Assembly. This is the lowest number since the 16th National Assembly in 2000, which had 112. The public expects these lawmakers to lead politics of dialogue and compromise amid a ruling party minority opposition majority structure and to deliver tangible results. We introduce the elected officials who are expected to bring a fresh breeze to the 22nd National Assembly. (1) Park Ji-hye (2) Go Dong-jin (3) Kwak Sang-eon (4) Park Soo-min (5) Park Chung-kwon (6) Seo Myung-ok (7) Im Mi-ae (8) Choi Eun-seok (9) Bu Seung-chan (10) Wi Seong-rak (11) Jo Seung-hwan (12) Kim Nam-hee (13) Kim Jun-hyung (14) Park Sung-hoon (15) Kim Hyun-jung (16) Kim Yong-tae

Kim Yong-tae, born in 1990, whose nickname changed from "the youth critic of the People Power Party" to "the youngest ruling party elected official in the 22nd general election," is entering the National Assembly. The boy who watched the American NBC political drama "The West Wing," which aired from 1999 to 2006, became fascinated with politics as a way to change society and entered politics by joining the Bareun Party in 2017 right after being discharged as an army officer. Kim said, "It seems the opportunity to realize the values I think about has come sooner."

Kim Yong-tae, a member-elect of the People Power Party, is being interviewed by Asia Economy at the National Assembly Members' Office Building on the 23rd. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Kim's ambition is to resolve the "reverse discrimination" faced by the northern Gyeonggi region, including his constituency Pocheon·Gapyeong. He diagnosed that "although about 3.6 million people live in northern Gyeonggi, which is the largest population after southern Gyeonggi (about 10 million) and Seoul (about 9.77 million), the entire area is subject to double or triple regulations such as the Capital Region Readjustment Act and various preservation zones, making it difficult to attract corporate and urban infrastructure investments," and that polarization between southern and northern Gyeonggi is intensifying. Kim believes that establishing a special self-governing province for northern Gyeonggi and creating special provisions to distinguish it from the south could lay the foundation for the next 100 years of a unified Korea. Therefore, once the 22nd National Assembly convenes, he plans to actively persuade other lawmakers to amend the Capital Region Readjustment Act and lift various regulations.

Kim, who majored in energy policy at university (Kwangwoon University, Department of Environmental Engineering) and graduate school (Korea University Green School Graduate School, Master’s in Energy and Environmental Policy), emphasized that he will lead efforts to improve awareness within the government and party regarding climate change response and renewable energy. He pointed out that focusing only on nuclear power, as is currently the case, could cause disruptions in the Basic Plan for Electricity Supply and Demand. According to the 10th Basic Plan for Electricity Supply and Demand announced by the Yoon Seok-yeol administration in January last year, South Korea plans to raise the share of renewable energy from 6.2% in 2018 to 21.6% by 2030, an increase of 15.4 percentage points.

Kim stated, "In South Korea, which lacks natural resources, it is very important not to be energy-biased. Both nuclear power and renewable energy are very important low-carbon energy sources that can produce electricity in a country without resources." Additionally, since climate change response is being used as a trade barrier by several countries, he is also planning to engage in green diplomacy with climate response advanced countries such as the UK and Denmark in his capacity as a lawmaker.

In an interview with Asia Economy, Kim did not hold back criticism of his party and the Yoon Seok-yeol administration. Regarding the reestablishment of the Emergency Response Committee, he said, "I hope this will be the last emergency situation under the Yoon Seok-yeol administration," emphasizing, "What the public expects from the ruling party is stability and responsibility, and it is inappropriate to call it an emergency situation and establish an emergency committee for two years straight."

He also stressed the need to overcome authoritarianism in relation to President Yoon Seok-yeol and the presidential office. Although President Yoon moved the presidential office from the Blue House to Yongsan to enhance communication, Kim pointed out that there is currently a sense of disconnect from the public’s perspective. Kim suggested, "If there is a difference from public opinion, it is necessary to communicate more with the people and narrow the gap through dialogue."

Kim Yong-tae, a member-elect of the People Power Party, is being interviewed by Asia Economy at the National Assembly Members' Office Building on the 23rd. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Kim said that although the 22nd National Assembly still has a ruling party minority opposition majority, there is still hope for the People Power Party. He mentioned, "In fact, the Democratic Party had people from the 586 generation who became lawmakers in their 30s, so generational change has been slow," and added, "(The People Power Party) has undergone gradual change and generational replacement with younger politicians." He said, "Maybe our party was scolded by the public because we were not noisy enough and forced one voice," and criticized, "In the past two years, if voices different from the presidential office were raised, they were framed as anti-Yoon and subjected to political trials." Regarding the Reform New Party, he clearly expressed his intention to cooperate, saying, "Going forward, we need to continue a bipartisan dialogue and innovation relationship for the people and the country."

Kim Yong-tae, a member-elect of the People Power Party, is being interviewed by Asia Economy at the National Assembly Members' Office Building on the 23rd. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@