Young Kim

Young Kim

Young Oak Kim is a South Korean-born American politician and the first Korean-American woman elected to Congress. She previously served as the California State Assemblywoman for the 65th district from 2014 to 2016. In 2018, Kim was the Republican Party candidate in California’s 39th congressional district; she was defeated by Democrat Gil Cisneros. In 2020, Kim and CisnerOS faced off again in a rematch, where Kim defeated Cisnero.

About Young Kim in brief

Summary Young KimYoung Oak Kim is a South Korean-born American politician and the first Korean-American woman elected to Congress. She previously served as the California State Assemblywoman for the 65th district from 2014 to 2016. In 2018, Kim was the Republican Party candidate in California’s 39th congressional district; she was defeated by Democrat Gil Cisneros in the general election. In 2020, Kim and CisnerOS faced off again in a rematch, where Kim defeated Cisnero. Along with Michelle Steel and David Valadao, Kim thus became the joint-first Republican congressional candidate to unseat an incumbent House Democrats from California since 1994. Kim was born in 1962 in Incheon, South Korea, and spent her childhood in Seoul. She and her family left South Korea in 1975, living first in Guam, where she finished junior high school, and then Hawaii.

She has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Southern California. After graduating from USC, Kim worked as a financial analyst for First Interstate Bank and then as a controller for JK Sportswear Manufacturing. She also started her own business in the clothing industry. Kim worked for then-state senator Ed Royce after Kim’s husband met Royce while promoting a nonprofit, the Korean American Coalition. In 2017, Kim announced she would be running for the Orange County Board of Supervisors, a nonpartisan office, in the 4th district, which includes the cities of Fullerton, Placentia, La Habra, and Brea, plus portions of Anaheim and Buena Park.