Yong Hye-in, the Basic Income Party floor leader nominated as minister of gender equality and family, arrives at her office at the National Assembly building on Monday. [Yonhap]
Yong Hye-in, the Basic Income Party floor leader nominated as minister of gender equality and family, arrives at her office at the National Assembly building on Monday. [Yonhap]

Yong Hye-in, 36, the Basic Income Party floor leader nominated as minister of gender equality and family under the Lee Jae Myung administration, began her public life as a student activist before entering politics and going on to lead the founding of the Basic Income Party. Born in 1990, she is the first cabinet nominee from the so-called "90s generation" to emerge from the Lee administration.

Yong was born in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, attended Gyeongan High School and studied political science and diplomacy at Kyung Hee University. In 2014, while still a university student, she drew national attention during the Sewol ferry disaster by proposing the "Stay Still" silent march — a protest against the government's handling of the tragedy in which participants carried pickets and chrysanthemums in silence. The demonstrations spread across the country between April and May of that year.

The protests led to her indictment on charges including violation of the Assembly and Demonstration Act. She was later sentenced to a fine of 1 million won ($726) on remand.

The experience prompted Yong to enter politics directly. She ran as a proportional representative candidate for the Labor Party in the 2016 National Assembly election but was not elected. In 2020, she led the founding of the Basic Income Party — dedicated to providing a universal basic income to all citizens — and became its standing chairperson.

That same year, she won a proportional seat in the 21st National Assembly through the Together Citizens Party, a proportional alliance led by the Democratic Party of Korea. During her first term she served on the Assembly's gender and family committee, where she spoke out on issues including digital sexual exploitation. She later returned to the Basic Income Party and won re-election as a proportional representative in the 22nd National Assembly in 2024.

Her nomination has drawn attention to her longstanding ties with President Lee Jae Myung. The two share a common belief in basic income, one of the core values Lee has championed. In 2019, when Lee was serving as governor of Gyeonggi Province, he visited the Basic Income Party's founding preparatory committee and held a meeting with Yong. She also served as co-chair of Lee's joint election campaign committee ahead of the last presidential election.

As a lawmaker, Yong has pursued legislation to legally recognize "lifestyle partners" — people who share their lives outside of marriage or blood ties — as family. She has also consistently pushed to revise the criminal code's definition of rape, shifting the standard from the use of force or threats to the presence or absence of consent.

Cheong Wa Dae said Yong was "the right person to move beyond generational and gender conflict toward gender equality for all," adding that she had "spoken out clearly on the side of society's most vulnerable — on preventing digital sex crimes and creating conditions for work-life balance."

After the nomination, Yong wrote on social media that she would "devote every effort to bringing about real, tangible change that all citizens can feel and agree on, and to creating a warmer and happier everyday life." She added that she would "approach the National Assembly confirmation hearing with sincerity and humility."

Yong is expected to retain her proportional representative seat. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family plans to form a confirmation hearing preparation team shortly and begin formal preparations.

Profile — Yong Hye-in, nominee for minister of gender equality and family: born 1990 in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province; Gyeongan High School; Kyung Hee University, department of political science and diplomacy; Basic Income Party chairperson; member of the 21st and 22nd National Assembly; Basic Income Party floor leader; representative member of the National Life Safety Forum.


kido@heraldcorp.com