Ulsan's new mayor pledges 'citizen sovereignty' but faces uphill battle in opposition-dominated council

Ulsan Mayor Kim Sang-uk has set "a democratic city where citizens are the masters" as the governing vision for his administration, enshrining the "citizen sovereignty" and "democratic city" campaign pledges he put forward during the June 3 local elections. All policies and personnel decisions over the next four years will be guided by citizens' interests rather than political loyalty.

On his first day in office Tuesday, Kim opened all entry gates at city hall to the public, allowing any resident to enter freely — a symbolic gesture signaling that citizen sovereignty would be embedded across the entire administration.

On Wednesday, the day after his inauguration, Kim held a "Mayor and Staff Day" session in the second-floor auditorium of city hall's main building, with about 500 employees in attendance. The session, in which Kim fielded staff questions on the spot, was designed to share his governing philosophy from within the organization.

Before taking office, the mayoral transition committee received briefings from 32 divisions, bureaus, headquarters and agencies between June 16 — starting with the public affairs, audit and civil rights offices — and June 29. It then conducted site visits and reviewed key campaign pledges before presenting Kim with proposals on organizational restructuring and the fate of major projects launched under his predecessor.

Kim attended each briefing in person, gaining a comprehensive picture of city administration and flagging problems with certain projects, signaling that some would be scrapped or revisited.

The transition committee announced it would scrap or review a number of major projects from the previous administration. It recommended canceling the Ulsan Industrial Festival and the Hakseong Park Waterway Restoration Project — a waterfront development combining tourism, culture and flood-safety functions with a total budget of 670 billion won ($431 million) — citing insufficient impact on attracting outside tourists and fiscal concerns.

For Ulsan Urban Railway (Tram) Line 1, a long-sought infrastructure project for the city, the committee proposed holding a public deliberation process before deciding whether to proceed, pointing to traffic disruption during construction and ongoing operating costs afterward. A plan to build a world-class performing arts venue — a 2,500-seat multipurpose concert hall costing 500 billion won — and a new Yulhyeon district agricultural and marine products wholesale market were also flagged for review on grounds of fiscal burden and public inconvenience. For the city bus public-ownership scheme, the committee proposed a phased transition that would eventually establish a dedicated transit authority.

With the new administration signaling cancellations or reviews of projects pursued by its predecessor, securing cooperation from the city council has emerged as the decisive factor in whether the ninth elected Ulsan administration succeeds. How Kim persuades the public has also become a pressing challenge.

In the ninth Ulsan City Council, the People Power Party holds 15 of 22 seats, the Democratic Party holds six and the Progressive Party holds one — leaving the ruling party with less than a third of the chamber. Kim has already begun meeting with council members to seek their cooperation in forming a public deliberation committee on Tram Line 1, the city's most contentious issue, but the process is expected to run into difficulties from the ordinance-drafting stage onward.

"Many projects, including the tram, require large budgets and ongoing operating costs after construction, so they can only move forward with the city council's cooperation — I will actively work to persuade the council," Kim said. He also said he plans to lobby central government officials to secure more national funding and to ensure Ulsan is included in the government's "three mega-projects" — semiconductor, AI data center and physical AI initiatives — from which the city has so far been excluded.

Local political circles have voiced concern, saying that while scrutinizing projects carefully in the public interest is commendable, an administration that reverses course every time a new mayor takes office risks generating conflict rather than consensus in civic society. Kim's ability to communicate effectively with both the Ulsan City Council and the central government is now being put to the test.