Rep. Kim Hyun is a key voice for political liberals. Her witty but piercing comments and outspoken nature have put her in the firing line of partisan battles for more than a decade.

As a first-term lawmaker, the vice spokesperson of the main opposition Democratic United Party is poised to bring her skills to the parliament and, she says, speak for minorities, defend the liberal cause and maximizing the party’s chances in December’s presidential election.

Despite her 24-year party career, she had been outside the National Assembly until she won a proportional representative seat in April.

“Never have I thought of becoming a lawmaker myself. I always believed that my role was to assist the party as an ordinary member and communication channel,” Kim told The Korea Herald.

The 46-year-old is one of the star figures of the liberal camp. She drew attention during the Seoul mayoral by-election last year, when she was in the vanguard of the party’s offensive against the ruling Saenuri Party’s candidate, Na Kyung-won.

During the prolonged war of words, the feisty spokeswoman often faced criticism for feeding confrontational politics.

“But those who speak and act upon their beliefs are bound to face criticism,” she said. 

The opposition camp has to be aggressive in order to criticize the current administration and win elections, she added.

“Things were different when I was on the side of power (under the Roh Moo-hyun administration), working in the presidential office under the former president,” Kim said.

Kim headed the presidential press center Chunchugwan as its first-ever female director from 2005-2007.

“But even then, the Roh administration was relatively active and lively as it advocated freedom of press, a clear contrast to the Lee Myung-bak regime’s tight regulations,” she said.

Being one of the pro-Roh figures of the party, Kim stands as a key aide to Rep. Lee Hae-chan, the newly-elected party chief and former prime minister under the Roh presidency.

“Many denounce the rise of the so-called Roh aides, but need to understand that this is not a factional matter,” she said.

“In order to lay the groundwork for the future and win in the upcoming elections, it is crucial to respect the leverage of high-profile figures, such as Lee and Moon Jae-in, and to offer them sincere support.”

The Gangwon-born lawmaker also pledged to expand the party’s political clout in the eastern province, in which the party lost in all nine parliamentary races in the April general elections.

“Gangwon Province has long been a right-wing stronghold but showed potential of taking a progressive turn when it elected the DUP candidate Lee Kwang-jae as governor in 2010,” Kim said.

“I shall cooperate closely with Governor Choi Moon-soon to win back the significant battlefield from the conservative camp.”

Another one of her plans for the next four years is to build a social security system for single-parent households.

“As a single mother, I understand the hardships that working mothers face when raising their children,” she said.

“A legal system is necessary to make sure that single parents receive their due divorce settlement and find a stable job.”

The lawmaker-elect is also set to join the parliamentary committee on culture and broadcasting, with the stated aim of restoring democratic order in the media and the prosecution.

“I hope to make good use of my newly-gained position as lawmaker to speak out for various minority groups and to promote true democracy in our society.”

By Bae Hyun-jung (tellme@heraldcorp.com)