Welcome! I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Political Science at UC San Diego. 

My research interests lie at the intersection of political parties and the consequences of authoritarian rule in new democracies, with a regional focus on Korea and the Asia-Pacific. In my dissertation, I use an original dataset to study how some pro-democracy movements, leaders, or groups that previously opposed authoritarian rule succeed in building durable political parties and win in nationwide elections, while many others dissolve or decline shortly after a country's democratic transition. I also study whether and under what conditions the electoral success of these surviving opposition successor parties (OSPs) are likely to contribute to the resilience of the country's democracy as well as political polarization. In other works, I use longitudinal surveys to analyze trends of political polarization as well as micro-level data to study factors that shape various forms of political opposition under autocratic rule.

Before coming to San Diego, I received my B.A. in Political Science and International Relations, and Economics in 2017 and an M.A. in Political Science and International Relations in 2019 at Korea University in Seoul, South Korea. In my free time, I enjoy swimming as well as exploring new music and surrealist artwork.