- Official refusal to resign from parliamentary seat on Facebook on the 31st... Citing concerns over becoming an extra-parliamentary party as justification
- Aftermath of joining a satellite party... A deformed structure where the Democratic Party of Korea inherits the seat upon resignation
- Directly breaking the long-standing convention of proportional representatives stepping down upon appointment to cabinet, such as Kang Eun-hee in 2015
- Ahn Cheol-soo, Han Dong-hoon, and Lee Jun-seok launch a barrage of criticism... Warnings of alienation among 2030 voters even within the ruling bloc
A cabinet nominee has ultimately clung to her proportional representative seat. Rep. Yong Hye-in of the Basic Income Party, nominated as the Minister of Gender Equality and Family, officially announced on the 31st that she would refuse to resign from her parliamentary seat. She has broken the firm, unwritten rule of the political sphere, where proportional representatives would pass their badges to the next candidate in line to prevent a legislative vacuum upon entering the cabinet. Fierce criticism from both ruling and opposition parties, including labels like "acting like an aristocrat" and "freeloading," has caused the atmosphere surrounding the confirmation hearings to freeze rapidly.
The deformed electoral structure created by opportunistic satellite parties is the core trigger for this situation. During the 2024 general election, nominee Yong was elected as a proportional representative for the Democratic Alliance, a pan-opposition satellite party. Under current public official election law, if she resigns, the next person in line, Ko Jae-soon, former secretary-general of the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation (Democratic Party of Korea), would take the seat. The Basic Income Party, having lost its only sitting lawmaker, would immediately be relegated to an extra-parliamentary party.
On Facebook that day, nominee Yong wrote, "If I, the only lawmaker from my party, resign, the Basic Income Party faces the difficulty of becoming an extra-parliamentary party," adding, "I bow my head and ask for understanding regarding the difficulties of a minority party where an individual's decision is inevitably linked to the party's path." She defended herself by stating, "If this were just my personal issue and I were not the only lawmaker from the Basic Income Party, I would not have agonized over whether to resign from the seat," and added, "I have already informed the party that I will not run as a proportional representative in the next general election."
Article 29 of the National Assembly Act allows lawmakers to hold concurrent positions as cabinet members. However, there has been an implicit rule that proportional representatives should resign from their parliamentary seats. In 2015, during the Park Geun-hye administration, Kang Eun-hee of the Saenuri Party also attempted to keep her badge immediately after being nominated as Minister of Gender Equality and Family, but she eventually raised the white flag after facing a barrage of public criticism.
The opposition bloc launched a barrage of attacks. Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo of the People Power Party wrote on Facebook, "Nominee Yong is a 'silver spoon' who has worn a proportional badge twice in a row thanks to the Democratic Party's handouts," and harshly criticized, "The appointment of 'hate-monger' Yong Hye-in as minister will be President Lee Jae-myung's self-destruct card for his administration." He further rebuked her, saying, "She is even acting like an aristocrat, claiming she will keep her proportional seat even if she becomes a minister." Independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon also struck directly, asking, "Whose daughter is she?" and adding, "It means that the history of proportional representatives resigning and the established conventions don't apply to her." Rep. Lee Jun-seok of the Reform Party sharpened his tone, saying, "President Lee is drinking pufferfish poison, and the country will once again be engulfed in that agony," and added, "Why are you touching that again after barely cleaning up the 'hardcore feminists'? You might as well just be pro-North Korea."
The sentiment within the ruling bloc is also unusual. Former Justice Party lawmaker Park Won-seok appeared on CBS Radio's 'Park Sung-tae's News Show' and warned, "On top of the 'freeloader' image, there could be a massive alienation among men in their 20s and 30s who have very negative views on gender conflict. When looking at the pros and cons, it's impossible for people inside and outside the Democratic Party not to ask, 'Is this really helping us?'" The actions of a proportional representative minister, who has brought a huge political burden to the entire administration while trying to protect her party's rice bowl, are signaling a fierce backlash.