[Lee Jae-min] From fragmentation to merger: A major shift in the nation’s local governments

It was in 1993 that Korea adopted a full local autonomous system, a pivotal development in the nation’s administrative structure. The Local Autonomy Act was then amended in 1994, and the first nationwide local government elections took place in June 1995. I still remember the excitement and the sense of unfamiliarity surrounding those elections at that time. In 2026, the local government system is undergoing its most significant change in 33 years. The wind has shifted: for a long time, the tren

By The Korea Herald