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South Korean politician From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lee Un-ju (Korean: 이언주; born 8 November 1972) is a South Korean lawyer[1] and politician who served as the Member of the National Assembly for Gwangmyeong 2nd constituency from 2012 to 2020. She formerly served as the deputy parliamentary leader of the Democratic Unionist Party in 2012 and the People's Party in 2017.[2][1]
Lee Un-ju | |
|---|---|
이언주 | |
 | |
| Member of the National Assembly | |
| In office 30 May 2012 – 29 May 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Chun Jae-hui |
| Succeeded by | Yang Ki-dae |
| Constituency | Gwangmyeong 2nd |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 8 November 1972 Yeongdo, Busan, South Korea |
| Political party | People Power |
| Other political affiliations | Democratic Unionist Party (2012–2013) Democratic Party (2013–2014) New Politics Alliance for Democracy (2014–2015) Democratic Party of Korea (2015–2017) People's Party (2017–2018) Bareunmirae (2018–2019) Onward for Future 4.0 (2020) UFP (2020) |
| Spouse | Choi Won-jae |
| Children | 1 son |
| Alma mater | Seoul National University |
| Occupation | Lawyer, politician |
| Signature |  |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 이언주 |
| Hanja | 李彦周 |
| Revised Romanization | I Eonju |
| McCune–Reischauer | I Ŏnju |
Born in Yeongdo, Busan,[3] Lee grew up in Singapore.[4][5] She has a degree in French at Seoul National University,[3] and passed the judicial examination in 1997.[2] She was involved in several part-time jobs after her father's business went bankrupt during the economic crisis in 1997.[1] Her mother died in 2011.[1]
During the 2000s, Lee worked as an entrepreneur at S-Oil and Renault Samsung Motors.[2][3]
In early 2012, Lee was brought into the Democratic Unionist Party (then the Democratic Party) by its president, Han Myung-sook.[6] She was nominated as an MP candidate for Gwangmyeong 2nd constituency, and defeated the incumbent Chun Jae-hui of the Saenuri Party.[7][1][6] She was re-elected to the same constituency in 2016.[6]
During the 2017 presidential election, Lee criticised Moon Jae-in, the presidential candidate for Democratic Party.[8] On 6 April, she shifted to the People's Party and endorsed its candidate, Ahn Cheol-soo.[8][7][6] At that time, the approval rate of Ahn was as high as Moon, after her endorsement by several anti-Moon politicians.[6] Meanwhile, Ahn's approving then dropped and finished as 3rd (21.41%), approximately half of Moon.[6]
Lee unsuccessfully ran for the party president on 27 August. She supported the party's merger with the Bareun Party, and joined the Bareunmirae Party in the early 2018. In November 2018, sources reported that she would join the Liberty Korea Party.[9]
On 23 April 2019, Lee left Bareunmirae.[10][11]
In the 2020 election, Lee was nominated as the United Future candidate for Busan South 2nd constituency.[12] However, she lost to the Democratic candidate and incumbent MP Park Jae-ho.[13]
The resignation of the Mayor of Busan Oh Keo-don on 23 April 2020 following the allegations of sexual harassment has provoked the by-election in 2021.[14][15]
On 17 December 2020, Lee announced her intention to run for the Busan mayorship at Convention Hall of Busan Exhibition and Convention Centre (BEXCO).[16][17] She cited a sexual harassment controversy related to the former Mayor Oh and indicated that the by-elections must be the "base" of the regime change.[16][17] The following was her manifesto included in her declaration:[16][17]
Lee contested PPP preselection on 4 March 2021, but lost to the former MP for Suyeong Park Hyung-joon and the former Deputy Mayor Park Seong-hun.[18][19]
Formerly, Lee positioned herself as a centrist.[20] She is now considered part of the Korean far-right,[21] supporting a market economy,[21] a stronger security policy, and holding a conservative outlook on issues such as immigration.[22][23] However, she considers herself as centre-right liberal.[22][23]
Lee is a capitalist[20] who supports market economy and opposes the increase of minimum wages[20] and pro-labour policies. She criticised President Moon's economic policy as socialism,[24] and stated that "the US is enjoying prosperity due to capitalism".[20] She does not oppose economic democracy but says that "leftists have ruined its original meaning".[25]
Lee was widely criticised after she called school canteen cooks as "cooking moms".[6]
Lee denounced the Yemeni refugees on Jeju Island as "impostors seeking jobs and money" and opposes them.[25] She said, "South Korean conservatives must ensure the view towards immigration policy".[22][23] She wants to reduce the number of foreign workers and mentioned that the government should prioritise locals.[22][23] Lee also advocates for harsher policy for illegal immigrants.[22]
Lee is married to Choi Won-jae, a professor at Kyung Hee University.[26] She gave birth to a son in 2009.
| Year | Constituency | Political party | Votes (%) | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Gwangmyeong 2nd | DUP | 43,441 (50.09%) | Won |
| 2016 | Gwangmyeong 2nd | Democratic | 50,195 (52.18%) | Won |
| 2020 | South 2nd | UFP | 39,575 (48.74%) | Defeated |
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