The Gyeonggi Provincial Council, as the nation's largest metropolitan council, has once again taken the helm of the National Council of Provincial and Metropolitan City Council Chairs after eight years. Nam Jong-sep, Chair of the Gyeonggi Provincial Council (Democratic Party of Korea, Yongin 3), was elected as the 20th-term president of the council at its 2026 regular meeting held in Sejong City on the 5th. It has been eight years since 2018 that a Gyeonggi Provincial Council chair has assumed the presidency of the council, which represents all 16 metropolitan and provincial councils nationwide.

While Democratic Party chairs lead 10 of the 16 metropolitan councils, three individuals, including Chair Nam, expressed their intention to run for the presidency. However, after discussions, consensus converged on Chair Nam, who leads the nation's largest metropolitan council and has spearheaded the enactment of the "Local Council Act."

Since taking office, Chair Nam launched a chair-direct "Local Council Act Enactment Task Force (TF)" and has focused on developing legislation that guarantees council autonomy, including organizational authority, budgetary authority, and audit authority. He has directly visited metropolitan councils across the country, including the capital region, Jeju, the Chungcheong region, Jeonbuk, and Daegu, to build a coalition for the prompt enactment of the Local Council Act. With this election as council president, the movement to enact the Local Council Act, which Chair Nam has been driving, is expected to gain further momentum on a national scale.

Chair Nam presented three core priorities for the council's operation: the enactment of the Local Council Act, strengthening solidarity among local councils nationwide, and expanding educational and policy exchanges. In particular, he designated the enactment of the Local Council Act, which would support the substantive independence and professionalism of local councils, as the top priority and plans to rally the capabilities of all metropolitan and provincial councils nationwide to persuade the National Assembly and the government. Additionally, he aims to strengthen the cooperative system among metropolitan councils nationwide while broadening solidarity with basic councils to establish a cooperative foundation for enhancing local autonomy. He also plans to promote the sharing of best legislative practices and policy outcomes and to expand education and training programs for council members and secretariat staff.

Immediately after his election, Chair Nam held a picket demonstration urging the "prompt enactment of the Local Council Act" together with other metropolitan and provincial council chairs, marking his first official action. Participants held pickets bearing messages such as "Citizen-Led Local Autonomy" and "Enactment of the Local Council Act: Completing Decentralization," demanding swift passage of the legislation.

Chair Nam stated, "We will resolve the long-standing challenges of local councils one by one, starting with the enactment of the Local Council Act. We will utilize the capabilities accumulated by Gyeonggi Province and the foundation for cooperation with the government and National Assembly as shared assets of all metropolitan councils nationwide, and we will patiently explain and persuade until our demands translate into actual institutional change." He added, "We will create a framework for solidarity that extends beyond this council to encompass basic councils nationwide, and I will take the lead in enabling all local councils across the country to jointly build greater authority and responsibility."