Constitutional Reform Must Begin With Local Elections

National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-sik has proposed holding a constitutional referendum simultaneously with the nationwide local elections. This represents a meaningful effort to modernize the constitutional values and democratic order of the Republic of Korea, which have remained unchanged for 39 years since the 1987 revision, in line with the spirit of the times.

Speaker Woo suggested a phased approach to constitutional reform, starting with minimal agenda items where consensus can be reached. He specifically proposed strengthening controls over emergency martial law as the top priority—making martial law automatically void if National Assembly approval is not obtained within 48 hours of declaration. He also called for enshrining the May 18 spirit in the constitutional preamble and addressing regional imbalances in keeping with the significance of local elections.

Although the timeline is tight, holding a constitutional referendum alongside the local elections is not impossible. Constitutional amendments must be proposed at least 60 days before the vote. If the National Assembly promptly establishes a Special Committee on Constitutional Revision and submits a proposal by April 7, the referendum can proceed.

To pass a constitutional amendment through the National Assembly plenary session, at least 200 votes—two-thirds of all members—are required. Beyond the ruling bloc's 180 votes, support from at least 20 People Power Party members is needed. While the PPP has been clashing daily with the ruling party and president over the Democratic Party's three judicial reform bills, many of its members have previously expressed agreement on constitutional reforms regarding power decentralization, balanced regional development, and enshrining the May 18 spirit. Securing more than 20 votes appears achievable.

The National Referendum Act had been the greatest legal obstacle to constitutional reform, but fortunately it was rapidly amended. As a result, advance voting, absentee voting, and shipboard voting are now available for overseas citizens as well as 18-year-olds who gained voting rights in 2020. The referendum law, which the Constitutional Court ruled unconstitutional in 2014 and required revision by 2015, was delayed for over a decade before passing the National Assembly plenary in a single stroke on the 1st of this month. Public consensus built over the years drove this progress.

Just as the long-delayed National Referendum Act was swiftly amended, political will is most crucial for opening the path to constitutional reform. According to a recent National Assembly survey, seven out of ten citizens support constitutional amendment. Acting President Lee Jae-myung has also designated constitutional reform as "National Agenda No. 1" and proposed holding the vote simultaneously with local or general elections. Members of both the ruling and opposition parties should join this effort to restore Korea's democratic constitutional order, which temporarily regressed due to the emergency martial law.

Constitutional amendment is urgently needed to address new challenges of the era—human dignity in the age of superintelligence, resolving social polarization and achieving balanced regional development, and protecting the rights of future generations including climate crisis response and pension reform—while guaranteeing a happy and safe life for citizens. Building on the public consensus established over many years, if we first secure procedural legitimacy for constitutional discussions and proceed step by step starting with non-contentious agenda items where agreement is easier, this local election could open the door to constitutional reform for the first time in 39 years.