Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City to Launch in July... How Will the 'Imperial Special Mayor' Be Kept in Check?

National Assembly Research Service: "Insufficient Oversight... Council's Role Must Be Strengthened"

Measures Needed Such as Enhanced Personnel Hearings and Expanded Multi-Member Districts

Securing 20 Trillion Won in Funding and Institutionalizing Resident Deliberation Also Remain Key Challenges

With the passage of the special administrative integration act for Jeonnam and Gwangju through the National Assembly and the subsequent completion of the approval process in the Cabinet, the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City will officially be launched on July 1. As this is the first attempt at administrative integration between metropolitan governments, there are calls for further institutional improvements. There are also concerns that, given the powerful position of the new integrated metropolitan mayor, measures must be taken to strengthen the oversight and checks provided by the council.

According to the report titled "Key Contents and Future Tasks of the Metropolitan Administrative Integration Special Act" released by the National Assembly Research Service on March 7, additional institutional improvements will be required following the launch of the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City. The Research Service noted, "With the passage of the special act, a mayor with strong authority will emerge, but the mechanisms to monitor and check this power are relatively weak," adding, "It is necessary to strengthen the role of local councils to effectively provide oversight of the integrated special city's executive branch, and to promote measures that encourage active resident participation."

As a solution, the Research Service argued that "the status and diversity of local councils must be enhanced." In fact, during the local elections four years ago, the Gwangju City Council (the metropolitan council) saw the Democratic Party win 22 out of 23 seats, with the remaining proportional representation seat going to the People Power Party. In the Jeonnam Provincial Council, out of 61 seats, the Democratic Party held 56, the Progressive Party 2, the People Power Party 1, the Justice Party 1, and an independent held 1 seat. Effectively, the Democratic Party dominated both the Gwangju and Jeonnam councils. With a single party controlling both the metropolitan mayor's office and the metropolitan council, the structure makes it difficult for checks and balances to function.

A banner hung on a building in Naman New Town, Muan County, Jeonnam, ahead of the passage of the Jeonnam Gwangju Special Law Integration Bill in the National Assembly on the 27th of last month. Photo by Yonhap News.

The Research Service suggested that, as an improvement, "the number of metropolitan council members should be increased and the proportion of proportional representation members should be raised. For basic councils, improvements in the electoral system, such as expanding multi-member districts, are required." Additionally, it was stated that preparations should be made to expand the scope of personnel hearings and make the holding of such hearings mandatory. It was also viewed as necessary to reinforce policy support staff and organizational structures to strengthen the legislative support functions for council members.

Discussions are also taking place in the National Assembly on institutional measures to increase diversity in local councils with the launch of the integrated special city. Assemblywoman Lim Mi-ae of the Democratic Party, Assemblyman Jeong Chun-saeng of the Innovation Party for the Fatherland, and Assemblywoman Jeong Hye-kyung of the Progressive Party have proposed an amendment to the Public Official Election Act that would designate the integrated special city council's constituencies to match those of the National Assembly and set the number of council members elected in each constituency to at least three and no more than five. This aims to guarantee the equality and proportionality of votes in the integrated special city council.

At a press conference, Assemblywoman Lim and others argued, "The election system must be changed to ensure that the integrated special city is subject to democratic control by citizens, rather than becoming an 'imperial power,'" adding, "While strengthening the proportionality of votes through multi-member districts may have some limitations, it will enable third parties and minority parties to enter the integrated city council and provide a channel for reflecting the diverse opinions of residents." The point is to ensure that there is at least a minimum opposition presence in the local councils to provide checks on the integrated special city mayor.

In fact, with the integration of metropolitan governments, the issue of the number of seats in the metropolitan council is also a challenge that must be addressed. Currently, Gwangju has a population of 1.4 million, while Jeonnam has 1.78 million. In Gwangju’s 20-seat city council, each member represents 69,847 people, whereas in the Jeonnam Provincial Council, each member represents 32,381 people. This is an almost twofold disparity, making the situation highly disproportionate. With the integration of metropolitan governments, the issue of population disproportionality must also be resolved.

The Research Service pointed out that, in relation to the launch of the integrated special city, the differences in administrative and fiscal authority between cities, counties, and autonomous districts are not clearly defined, and thus, a legal clarification of authority and responsibility is required. The Service also recommended that, regarding the government's announced 20 trillion won in financial support, concrete funding measures and a restructuring of the local fiscal system are needed. Furthermore, it was noted that, due to insufficient procedures for gathering resident input during the integration process, there is a need to institutionalize deliberative democracy procedures for other regions preparing for integration in the future.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.