Young Kim facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Young Kim
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| 최영옥 | |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California |
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| Assumed office January 3, 2021 |
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| Preceded by | Gil Cisneros |
| Constituency | 39th district (2021–2023) 40th district (2023–present) |
| Member of the California State Assembly from the 65th district |
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| In office December 1, 2014 – November 30, 2016 |
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| Preceded by | Sharon Quirk-Silva |
| Succeeded by | Sharon Quirk-Silva |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Choe Young-oak
October 18, 1962 Incheon, South Korea |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Charles Kim
(m. 1986) |
| Children | 4 |
| Residences | Anaheim Hills, California, U.S. |
| Education | University of Southern California (BBA) |
| Signature |  |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul |
(김) 최영옥
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| Hanja |
(金) 崔映玉
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| Revised Romanization | (Gim) Choe Yeong-ok |
| McCune–Reischauer | (Kim) Ch'oe Yŏng'ok |
Young Kim (born Choe Young-oak on October 18, 1962) is an American politician and businesswoman. She was born in South Korea and later moved to the United States. She currently serves as a U.S. representative for California's 40th congressional district. Before this, she represented the 39th congressional district from 2021 to 2023. Her district includes parts of Orange County.
In 2020, Young Kim, Michelle Steel, and Marilyn Strickland made history. They became the first three Korean-American women elected to the United States Congress. Kim and Steel were also the first Korean-Americans elected to Congress from California since Jay Kim (who is not related to Young Kim).
Young Kim is a member of the Republican Party. She served in the California State Assembly for the 65th district from 2014 to 2016. She won against the Democrat Sharon Quirk-Silva in 2014. However, Quirk-Silva won the seat back from Kim in 2016. Kim was the first Republican woman born in South Korea to be elected to the California State Legislature.
In 2018, Kim ran for Congress in California's 39th congressional district. She lost by a small margin to the Democrat Gil Cisneros. But in 2020, Kim ran against Cisneros again and won. She was one of the first three Republican candidates to defeat a sitting Democrat in the House of Representatives from California since 1994.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Young Kim was born in 1962 in Incheon, South Korea. She spent her early childhood years in Seoul. In 1975, her family moved from South Korea. They first lived in Guam, where she finished junior high school. Then, they moved to Hawaii, where she attended high school. She earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Southern California.
Early Career
After college, Kim worked as a financial analyst for First Interstate Bank. She then became a controller for JK Sportswear Manufacturing. She also started her own business in the clothing industry.
Later, Kim worked for state senator Ed Royce. Her husband had met Royce while promoting a nonprofit group. When Royce was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, Kim worked for him for 21 years. She was his community liaison and director of Asian affairs. During this time, she also had her own TV show, "LA Seoul with Young Kim." She also had a radio show, "Radio Seoul," where she talked about political topics important to Korean Americans.
California State Assembly Work
Kim was elected to the California State Assembly in 2014. She defeated Democratic Assemblymember Sharon Quirk-Silva. In 2016, Quirk-Silva won the seat back from Kim.
In 2014, Kim spoke against a California law. This law would let transgender students use bathrooms of their choice. It also allowed them to play sports based on their gender identity. Kim said she was concerned about building new school facilities. She also worried about extra spending. She also mentioned concerns about fairness in sports. She has stated that transgender people should be respected.
In 2015, Kim and 61 other Assembly members supported a resolution. This resolution made June "Pride Month." It also recognized same-sex marriage. Kim said this was to recognize people who contribute to the community. This included the LGBTQ community.
In 2016, Kim's plan for reelection included opposing changes to Proposition 13. This law limits property taxes.
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
2018 Election
In 2017, Kim announced she would run for the Orange County Board of Supervisors. This is a local, nonpartisan office. In January 2018, Representative Ed Royce announced he was retiring. Kim then decided to run for his seat in Congress instead. Royce supported Kim the day after he announced his retirement. Kim received the most votes in the primary election. This allowed her to move on to the general election against Democrat Gil Cisneros.
Early results on election night showed Kim in the lead. However, she eventually lost to Cisneros after all mail-in ballots were counted. Cisneros received 51.6% of the vote, and Kim received 48.4%. She accepted the results on November 18.
2020 Election
In April 2019, Kim announced she would run for the 39th district again. Top Republican party leaders quickly supported her. In the March 2020 primary election, Kim received 48.3% of the vote. Cisneros received 46.9%. Both advanced to a rematch in the general election.
Kim raised more money for her campaign than Cisneros. She raised $6.16 million, while Cisneros raised $4.36 million. On election night, Kim led by about 1,000 votes. As more mail-in ballots were counted, her lead grew. The Associated Press announced her as the winner on November 13. She won even though Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden won the district by 10 points. Kim, Michelle Steel, and Marilyn Strickland became the first Korean-American women elected to Congress.
2022 Election
In December 2021, Kim announced she would run for reelection in California's 40th congressional district. This was due to changes in district boundaries.
Time in Office
On January 3, 2021, Kim was sworn into the 117th United States Congress.
On January 6, 2021, Kim voted to confirm Joe Biden's victory in the Electoral College. She did not support efforts to challenge the results.
On January 13, 2021, Kim voted against the second impeachment of Donald Trump. She said she supported criticizing Trump but not removing him from office.
On February 4, 2021, Kim joined 10 other Republican House members. They voted with all Democrats to remove Marjorie Taylor Greene from her committee assignments. This was in response to controversial statements Greene had made.
On February 25, 2021, Kim voted against the Equality Act. This bill would prevent discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. Kim stated that she believes all people should be treated with respect. However, she said her vote was because the bill "undermines Americans’ religious freedoms."
On February 27, 2021, Kim voted with all Republicans against the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. This was a $1.9 trillion bill for COVID-19 relief. She said there was not enough support from both parties. She also said that most of the money would not be spent until 2022.
Committee Roles
For the 118th Congress, Young Kim is part of these committees:
- Committee on Financial Services
- Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Monetary Policy
- Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance and International Financial Institutions (Vice Chair)
- Committee on Foreign Affairs
- Subcommittee on Africa
- Subcommittee on the Indo-Pacific (Chair)
Groups She Belongs To
Young Kim is a member of several groups in Congress:
- Problem Solvers Caucus
- Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues
- Climate Solutions Caucus
- Congressional Taiwan Caucus
- Congressional Caucus on India and Indian-Americans
- Republican Main Street Partnership
- Republican Governance Group
Political Views
Kim's platform in Congress includes several key points. She is against the Affordable Care Act. She supports people who are part of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. She also supports the county's stance against "sanctuary cities." She supports "chain migration," which allows family members to join immigrants in the U.S.
Issues important to Kim include creating jobs and keeping taxes low. She also wants to increase funding for education in science, technology, engineering, and math. She aims to improve the immigration system. She believes those brought to the U.S. as children without legal papers should be treated fairly. She supports student loan forgiveness for people close to bankruptcy. Kim favors fewer government rules and more trade. She is a fiscal conservative, meaning she believes in careful spending of government money.
Donald Trump
In June 2020, Kim criticized President Trump. He had referred to COVID-19 as "Kung Flu." This led to some criticism from members of her own party.
Foreign Affairs
Korea
Kim has shown concern about the issue of divided families on the Korean Peninsula. This is especially true for Korean Americans with relatives in North Korea. In February 2021, she and Grace Meng supported a bill (H.R.826). This bill would require the Secretary of State to help reunite divided Korean American families.
LGBT Rights
In 2014, Kim opposed a California law. This law would let transgender students use bathrooms of their choice. It also allowed them to play sports based on their gender identity. She said she was concerned about new school facilities being needed. She also worried about extra spending. She also mentioned concerns that male-to-female transgender students might have an unfair advantage in sports. She has stated that transgender people should be respected.
Kim opposed same-sex marriage in 2018. However, in 2015, she and 61 other Assembly members supported a resolution. This resolution made June "Pride Month" and recognized same-sex marriage. When asked about this, Kim said it was to "recognize individuals that are making contributions to our community, [including] the LGBTQ community."
In 2022, Kim opposed the Respect for Marriage Act. This law recognizes the validity of same-sex marriages. It overturned the Defense of Marriage Act. She voted against the different versions of this bill in the House.
Taxes
In 2016, Kim's plan for reelection to the Assembly included opposing changes to Proposition 13. This law limits property taxes.
Personal Life
Young Kim is married to Charles Kim. He works for a nonprofit and is involved in charity. They live in Anaheim Hills, California. They have four children. Kim is a Christian. In 2021, the Carnegie Corporation of New York honored Kim with the Great Immigrants Award.
Images for kids
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Young Kim campaigning in 2019
In Spanish: Young Kim para niños
