John Lim

John Lim (born December 23, 1935) is a South Korean-born American politician from the state of Oregon. He has served in both houses of the Oregon Legislative Assembly and was the Oregon State Senate Majority Leader in 1995. He has unsuccessfully run for the U.S. Senate and for the Republican nomination for Governor of Oregon.

John Lim
Member of the Oregon House of Representatives
from the 50th district
In office
January 2005 – January 2009
Preceded byLaurie Monnes Anderson
Succeeded byGreg Matthews
Member of the Oregon Senate
from the 11th district
In office
January 1993 – January 2001
Preceded byGlenn Otto
Succeeded byJohn Minnis
Personal details
Born (1935-12-23) December 23, 1935
Yeoju, Korea (now South Korea)
Political partyRepublican
EducationSeoul Theological University (BA)
George Fox University (MDiv)
John Lim
Hangul
임용근
Hanja
林龍根[1]
Revised RomanizationIm Yonggeun
McCune–ReischauerIm Yonggǔn

Early life

Lim was born in Yeoju, Gyeonggi-do, Korea.[2] As an adolescent, Lim suffered from tuberculosis for five years, from which he nearly died. He was married in 1963 and graduated from Seoul Theological College in 1964 with a Bachelor of Arts in Religion. He emigrated to the United States in 1966, penniless.[2] When he first arrived in America, he had no resources and worked as a janitor. He later had plans to become a Catholic priest. He eventually decided against this, however, as it would have required him to abandon his Protestant heritage. As an adult, Lim started several businesses, including a house painting and gardening business, a vitamin distribution company, and a real estate business with his wife.

He continued his theological studies at Western Evangelical Seminary at George Fox University, where he received his Master of Divinity (M.Div.) in 1970.

Political career

Lim was elected to the 11th district[3] of the Oregon State Senate in 1992. He served as Majority Leader in 1995[4] and was re-elected in 1996. In April 1999, while serving as chairman of the Trade & Economic Development committee, Lim famously proposed installing signs at the state lines reading, "You are welcome to visit Oregon, but please don't stay." The signs were intended to discourage visitors from moving to Oregon, to preserve the state's economic and ecologic infrastructure as well as general "quality of life."[5]

Lim was the Republican nominee for the United States Senate in 1998, losing to incumbent Democrat Ron Wyden.[6]

Oregon's term limit law was still in effect at the conclusion of his second Senate term, so he left the Senate following the 1999 Legislative session. Lim was succeeded by fellow Republican John Minnis.[7]

In 2004, Lim was elected State Representative of District 50. He was re-elected to that office in 2006, serving in the 73rd Oregon Legislative Assembly and the 74th Oregon Legislative Assembly.

John Lim lost his bid for re-election to the Oregon House in the 2008 general election. Former police officer Greg Matthews, a Democrat, took over representation of Oregon's 50th District in January 2009.

Lim was a candidate for the Republican nomination for Oregon governor in 2010.[8] He came in third out of nine, behind the primary winner Chris Dudley and second-place finisher Allen Alley.[9]

References
  1. "이민1세 임용근씨 美공화당후보 사실상 확정", Munhwa Ilbo, May 21, 1998, retrieved September 30, 2011
  2. "임용근 美오리건주 상원의원, 4선 도전", Donga Ilbo, May 20, 2004, retrieved September 30, 2011
  3. Note: District numbers changed following the Census of 2000.
  4. http://www.newberggraphic.com/news/2009/December/08/Local.News/john.lim.mounts.run.for.governor/news.aspx Archived March 5, 2012, at the Wayback Machine Retrieved July 7, 2010
  5. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on June 11, 2011. Retrieved January 30, 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. "Content Manager WebDrawer - 1998 General Election Official Results". records.sos.state.or.us. Retrieved July 7, 2010.
  7. Election record
  8. Mapes, Jeff (September 5, 2009). "John Lim says he's also running for governor". OregonLive.com.
  9. "Content Manager WebDrawer - 2010 Primary Election Official Results". records.sos.state.or.us. Retrieved October 30, 2018.
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