Kim Kyoung-soo (Korean김경수; born 1 December 1967) is a South Korean politician who served as a member of the National Assembly of South Korea from 2016 to 2018, and as Governor of South Gyeongsang Province from 2018 to 2021, until he was convicted and arrested for opinion rigging.[1][2][3]

Kim Kyoung-soo
김경수
Governor of South Gyeongsang Province
In office
1 July 2018 – 21 July 2021
Preceded byHong Joon-pyo
Succeeded byHa Byung-pil (acting)
Park Wan-su
Member of the National Assembly
In office
30 May 2016 – 14 May 2018
Preceded byKim Tae-ho
Succeeded byKim Jung-ho
ConstituencyGimhae B
Personal details
Born (1967-12-01) 1 December 1967 (age 56)
Goseong, South Korea
Political partyDemocratic
Alma materSeoul National University
ReligionRoman Catholic
(Christian name : Paul)
Korean name
Hangul
김경수
Hanja
金慶洙
Revised RomanizationGim Gyeongsu
McCune–ReischauerKim Kyŏngsu

Early life

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Born in Goseong of Gyeongsang Province, Kim spent his adolescence in Jinju. He enrolled in Seoul National University in the department of anthropology. Under the Roh Tae-woo government, Kim was sentenced to two years in prison for participating in the democracy movement, but was later released.

Political career

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Kim started his political career aiding lawmaker Shin Kye-ryun in 1994. In 2002, he joined the election camp of then-presidential candidate Roh Moo-hyun. After the president's suicide, Kim became the Democratic Party district chairman of Gimhae. He was elected district lawmaker in 2016 South Korean legislative election. He married a junior who studied at Seoul National University together.[4] Kim is considered to be part of the pro-Roh group, along with the former president Moon Jae-in and former South Chungcheong Province governor Ahn Hee-jung.[5]

In 2018, Kim was Democratic Party candidate for Governor of South Gyeongsang Province in the 2018 South Korean local elections. Kim narrowly won the election against conservative foe Kim Tae-Ho of the Liberty Korea Party. Despite his victory, Kim was suspected to have been heavily involved in the opinion rigging scandal.[6]

In 2019, Kim was jailed for two years on charges of online-rigging operations of both the first and second order.[7] In 21 July 2021, he was sentenced to two years by the supreme court for computer business obstruction, and eventually lost his position as governor.[2][3]

References

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  1. ^ 민주, 경남지사 후보 김경수 전략공천 확정 - 경남일보. 29 April 2018.
  2. ^ a b 김재환 (2021-07-21). 김경수, 징역 2년 확정…2028년까지 피선거권 박탈(종합). Newsis.
  3. ^ a b 이수현 (2021-07-21). 김경수, 징역 2년 확정 '지사직 박탈'…"댓글조작 공모 유죄". 매일신문.
  4. ^ 경남 김해 을 김경수 당선 소감 "대한민국 정치 변화의 신호탄". 14 April 2016.
  5. ^ 친노는 지금 분화 중…문재인-안희정의 사람 누가 있나. 20 February 2017.
  6. ^ "[Newsmaker] Police say the lawmaker was in contact with comment riggers". 20 April 2018.
  7. ^ "Governor Kim Kyoung-soo sentenced to 2 years for online opinion-rigging". 30 January 2019.