Young Koreans are not moving to the right

Koh Hyun-kohn

The author is the chief editorial writer at the JoongAng Ilbo. 

Last week, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang visited Korea. With his trademark charisma, he moved from industrial sites to a fried chicken restaurant, an internet cafe, a baseball stadium and a university campus. Yet public enthusiasm was noticeably weaker than during his previous visit.

When Huang visited last autumn, young people flocked to places he had visited. This time, many appeared less impressed. They understand that Huang’s highly visible appearances serve his company’s interests. There is nothing wrong with that, but neither is it a reason for excitement. The same applies to Korean business leaders who met him. If AI, semiconductors, robotics and gaming generate profits, the rewards will largely belong to those already positioned to benefit.

Watching the controversy at Samsung Electronics over profit-tied bonuses only reinforced a growing belief among many young people that they are being asked to cheer for a game in which they have little stake. Their attention was focused elsewhere — on Jamsil in Songpa District, southern Seoul, where a shortage of ballots during local elections sparked public anger.

At the heart of that frustration are a lack of jobs and widening inequality.

In May, the number of employed people aged 15 to 29 fell by 250,000 from a year earlier. As companies prepare for the AI era, many are hiring fewer workers. The decline of large-scale entry-level recruitment has been especially damaging. New graduates often struggle even to have their applications reviewed. Many spend years building credentials only to find themselves considered too old for entry-level positions.

The situation is likely to worsen as AI and automation spread. Greater efficiency often means fewer jobs. The divide between the minority of young people employed in advanced technology sectors and the broader youth population could widen significantly.

The sense of exclusion triggered by reports of large corporate bonuses is therefore not temporary. It reflects a deeper structural problem.

Government policy has also contributed to the frustration. Many young people believe policymakers are more focused on protecting existing workers than helping new workers enter the labor market.

The "Yellow Envelope" law is widely viewed as strengthening protections for organized labor. Critics argue that such measures may discourage new hiring. Meanwhile, Labor Minister Kim Young-hoon, a former union leader, is often associated with labor disputes and industrial accidents, while youth employment receives comparatively less attention.

President Lee Jae Myung has likewise spoken more frequently about worker protections than youth jobs. Previous administrations treated employment as a central policy priority. Many young people feel that urgency has faded.

Asset inequality has become another source of anger. Rising housing prices and stock values have widened the gap between those who already own assets and those who do not.

President Lee recently described the decline of the jeonse (lump-sum deposit) rental system as part of a normalization process. For young people struggling to find housing, such comments can sound detached from reality. Presidential policy chief Kim Yong-beom also drew criticism when he described high exchange rates, high interest rates and high inflation as the costs of success. Many felt the remark ignored the fact that those burdens fall disproportionately on younger and lower-income Koreans.

Young people increasingly interpret these developments through the lens of fairness. They feel that years of hard work and sacrifice are being dismissed. To them, labor unions, well-connected insiders and political elites often appear less like defenders of the vulnerable than beneficiaries of an unequal system.

Against this backdrop, many voters in their 20s and 30s supported opposition candidates in the recent local elections. Some commentators interpreted the results as evidence that younger Koreans are becoming more conservative.

Broadcaster Kim Eo-jun went further, arguing that right-leaning online communities created during the Lee Myung-bak administration were responsible. Such explanations are speculative and unconvincing.

Recent polling suggests a different story. Support for President Lee among voters in their 20s and 30s remains lower than among older generations. The consistent pattern is not ideological conservatism or progressivism but skepticism toward whoever holds power.

What we are witnessing is not a rightward shift. It is a broader resistance to entrenched interests and political authority.

Young Koreans are preoccupied with making a living. Without strong organizations or institutions to protect them, fairness becomes their last line of defense. Just as many criticized preferential treatment during the controversy over the conversion of temporary workers at Incheon International Airport, they reject perceived favoritism regardless of who benefits.

The same young people who condemned Cho Kuk’s hypocrisy also criticize Kim Keon Hee’s greed. Their anger over ballot shortages and their frustration with politicians seeking to exploit the controversy stem from the same impulse.

Labeling this generation as simply moving to the right misses the point. The real story is growing distrust of privilege, power and unfairness, regardless of ideology.