As the ninth elected local governments prepare to take office, approximately half of the local governments nationwide have established transition committees for their incoming leaders.
The Ministry of the Interior and Safety reported on July 2 that as of June 30, 121 out of 243 local governments (49.8%) have set up these committees.
Among the 126 regions where leadership changes are occurring, 113 (89.7%) have formed transition committees. In the 13 regions that did not establish committees, including Gwangju and Daegu, nine have created separate task forces to facilitate the transition process.
In the 117 regions where incumbents are being re-elected, most did not form transition committees. However, eight regions (6.8%), including Gyeongnam, have established committees to ensure continuity and future planning.
At the provincial level, 14 regions have formed transition committees. Seoul and North Gyeongsang did not create committees due to re-elections, while Gyeongnam, despite being a re-elected area, operates a four-member 'Gyeongnam Great Leap Preparation Team.'
The average size of the transition committees is 15 members, with provincial committees averaging 18 members and municipal committees averaging 14 members. The average budget for these committees is approximately 64 million won, with provincial committees averaging 160 million won and municipal committees around 55 million won.
Each transition committee can operate from the time the elected official is confirmed until 20 days after the start of their term. Provincial committees can have up to 20 members, including a chair and vice-chair, while municipal committees can have up to 15 members.
On May 29, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety distributed a manual for the transition committees of the ninth elected local government leaders. The aim is to prevent administrative gaps during leadership changes and to allow incoming officials to gather expert opinions from external members and systematically plan the future vision of local governments.
Kim Min-jae, Vice Minister of the Interior and Safety, stated, "Elected officials have the duty to quickly and accurately understand the characteristics of their regions and the needs of residents to ensure their quality of life and happiness. We will continue to operate the transition committee system to ensure that residents can enjoy a comfortable daily life and better administrative services during this transitional period."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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