Kwon Young-ghil (; born 5 November 1941) is a South Korean politician, journalist, and trade unionist. He was a founding member of the People's Victory 21 and Democratic Labour Party.
Life Kwon was born in Japan, before returning to Korea. His father Kwon Wu-hyun() was a member of left-wing nationalists movements. In Kwon's early years worked at Daehan Ilbo () and Seoul Shinmun as a journalist and newsman. From 1980 to 1987, he was a Seoul Shinmun correspondent in Paris, France.
He has a Bachelor's degree in sericulture from Seoul National University (1969). Before turning to politics, he led several labour organizations including Korean Federation of Press Unions and Korean Confederation of Trade Unions. In 1996 and 1997 he was Chairman of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU, 전국민주노동조합총연맹; 全國民主勞動組合總聯盟).
He was the President of left-wing Democratic Labour Party, and was a member of the 17th and 18th National Assembly. Kwon is a Roman Catholic. In 2000 to 2004 he was the head of the Democratic Labour Party. He was the party's presidential nominee in the 2002 and 2007 presidential election. After losing his bid for the governorship of the South Gyeongsang Province in 2012, and in the midst of the political scandal in the broader progressive movement in South Korea, Kwon declared his intention to retire from the frontline party politics.
Since 2013, Kwon has been a president of "Kwon Young-gil and a Better Livelihood" (), a think-tank that promotes and supports various progressive causes. Kwon urged people to vote for the Justice Party in the 2016 South Korean legislative election, and actively supported Sim Sang-jung's candidacy in the 2017 South Korean presidential election.
See also Democratic Labor Party (South Korea) Politics of South Korea
Election results Year Elections Constituency Political party Votes (%) Results 1997 1997 Presidential Election South Korea People's Victory for 21st Century 306,026 (1.20%) Defeated 2000 16th National Assembly General Election Changwon B (South Gyeongsang) DLP 36,579 (38.68%) Defeated 2002 2002 Presidential Election South Korea DLP 957,148 (3.89%) Defeated 2004 17th National Assembly General Election Changwon B (South Gyeongsang) DLP 52,758 (49.80%) Won 2007 2007 Presidential Election South Korea DLP 712,121 (3.01%) Defeated 2008 18th National Assembly General Election Changwon B (South Gyeongsang) DLP 42,809 (48.19%) Won 2012 2012 By-election South Gyeongsang(Governoral Elections) Independent 702,689 (37.08%) Defeated
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Kwon Young-ghil 민주노동당 홈페이지