[Breaking] National Assembly Passes Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City Act... Administrative Unification After 40 Years

159 Out of 175 Lawmakers Vote in Favor
"Gwangju Special City" Set to Launch on July 1
First Mayor to Be Elected in June 3 Local Elections

Gwangju and Jeonnam will once again be unified as a single administrative region. This comes nearly 40 years after Gwangju was separated as a directly governed city in 1986. The institutional foundation has now been established for the launch of an integrated local government, which will serve a population of 3.2 million people.

On the 1st, Shin Junghoon, Chairman of the National Assembly's Administrative Safety Committee, explained the special bill for the establishment of the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City and the partial amendment bill of the Local Autonomy Act (alternative) at the National Assembly. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

On March 1, the special bill for the establishment of the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City was passed at the National Assembly's plenary session, led by the ruling party. Out of 175 lawmakers present, 159 voted in favor, 2 opposed, and 14 abstained. Lawmakers from the People Power Party did not participate in the vote.

The special bill stipulates the creation of the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, combining Gwangju and South Jeolla Province. The new city hall will be distributed across Muan, Gwangju, and the eastern region of Jeonnam. In addition, the legislation provides grounds for national funding to establish clusters for advanced strategic industries such as artificial intelligence (AI) and semiconductors, and it clearly states the state's responsibility to restore the competitiveness of key local industries, such as petrochemicals, steel, and shipbuilding. The abbreviation for the integrated local government has been set as "Gwangju Special City."

On the same day, the National Assembly also passed an amendment to the Local Autonomy Act, which includes special provisions to reflect the unique administrative system resulting from the merger of the metropolitan city and province. The amendment passed with 165 out of 175 lawmakers in favor.

Once the special bill and the amendment to the Local Autonomy Act are approved by the Cabinet and promulgated, the Jeonnam-Gwangju Special City will be officially launched on July 1.

The head of the new local government will be elected in the nationwide local elections on June 3. This marks a transition from the administrative separation that has continued for nearly 40 years since Gwangju was promoted to "Gwangju Directly Governed City" and separated from South Jeolla Province in 1986, to a new era of integration.

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