Residents to Directly Choose Eup, Myeon and Dong Heads Starting Next Year

Basic Plan Drawn Up for the “Resident-Selected Appointment System for Eup, Myeon and Dong Heads”
Local Governments May Choose Between Open Recruitment and Open Appointment Models

Starting in 2027, local residents will be able to take part directly in the selection process for heads of eup, myeon and dong, who are responsible for frontline local administration.

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced on November 15 that it had drawn up a basic plan for piloting the “Resident-Selected Appointment System for Eup, Myeon and Dong Heads” to achieve meaningful decentralization through resident participation, and that the pilot program would begin in 2027.

The system is being pursued as part of a national policy task to “strengthen the capacity for decentralization to improve residents’ quality of life.” Some local governments have previously introduced similar systems, such as open recruitment for eup, myeon and dong heads. However, they have faced limitations, including a lack of representativeness among resident review panels, insufficient fairness in vetting candidates, and a lack of incentives.

Reflecting existing cases and feedback from the field, the ministry designed the basic plan to significantly strengthen the fairness of resident participation and the assessment of candidates’ capabilities.

The pilot program will be initiated when an eup, myeon or dong residents’ self-governing council gathers local residents’ views and submits an application to the relevant si, gun or gu. Depending on local circumstances, the local government may choose either an “open recruitment” model, in which civil servants are recruited, or an “open appointment” model, in which both civil servants and candidates with private-sector experience are considered.

The resident review panel will assess candidates through voting or deliberation after hearing their work plans and taking part in question-and-answer sessions. The assessment results will be considered by the selection committee in its eligibility review, and residents’ views will also be taken into account in the final recommendation and appointment of the candidate.

To ensure fairness and representativeness in the review process, both deliberative and voting panels will generally be formed through open recruitment. Deliberative panels will include, at set proportions, members of residents’ self-governing councils and representatives or officers of major local institutions and civic organizations. Voting panels will be formed through random selection that takes gender, age, occupation and neighborhood into account.

To help the system take root early, the ministry plans to award additional points in its local government innovation assessment to local governments participating in the pilot, and to present commendations to outstanding local governments. Based on the pilot’s results and feedback from the field, it also plans to identify and share best practices and develop a standard operating model for nationwide use.

Minister of the Interior and Safety Yoon Ho-jung said, “The pilot of the ‘Resident-Selected Appointment System for Eup, Myeon and Dong Heads’ is an effort to take resident self-governance to the next level by allowing residents to participate in choosing the heads who will be responsible for local administration in their communities.” He added, “We will actively support the system so that residents’ choices and voices are reflected in local administration and meaningful resident self-governance can be achieved.”

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