Politician who served in the 14th-17th National Assemblies and as floor leader of the Uri Party; former president of Woosuk University
| Life | 1948 |
| Era | 현대 |
| Clan | 흥덕 장씨 |
Jang Yeong-dal (b. 1948) is a South Korean politician of the Heungdeok Jang clan. According to Korean Wikipedia he was born on September 26, 1948 in Sinpyeong-ri, Songdong-myeon, Namwon County, North Jeolla, graduated from Jeonju High School and Kookmin University (Public Administration), and holds a master's from Kookmin's Law School and a doctorate in public administration from Hanyang University.
He is introduced as having served seven years for the 1974 Minchong Hakryeon case opposing the Yushin system, helped found the Youth Coalition for Democracy in 1983 as its first vice-chair, and was director-general of the Minjuktongil Minjung Movement coalition in 1985. He entered party politics with the Party for Peace and Democracy in 1988 and passed through several parties. Elected for Wansan District, Jeonju, in 1992, he served four terms (14th-17th Assemblies), chaired the Defense Committee in 2002, and was floor leader of the Uri Party from January 31, 2007.
He lost in the 2008 general election, finishing second. In 2009 he was indicted under the Political Funds Act over 7 million won received with a personnel request; the first trial sentenced him to four months, but the appeals court held that the money was not payment for a request, acquitted on the funds charge and fined him 5 million won on a separate false-accusation count. He served as the 13th president of Woosuk University from February 2018 to July 2019, later becoming honorary president, and chaired the Defense Security Command reform committee in 2018.
Korean Wikipedia lists his party record as the Party for Peace and Democracy (1988-1991), the New Democratic Union Party and the Democratic Party, the National Congress for New Politics, the Millennium Democratic Party, the Uri Party (2003-2007), the Grand Unified Democratic New Party, and the United Democratic Party (2008-2011), reaching the Democratic Party of Korea from 2015. He was vice-president of the Korea Football Association in 2001 and held posts such as chair of the defense committee in the Constitutional Assembly Association.