What are the issues?
On October 11, Mongolians head to the polls for nationwide local elections. This latest round of elections, which follows the country’s June parliamentary elections, features more than 17,000 candidates competing for more than 8,000 seats across a vast expanse of territory roughly the size of western Europe. Available seats include sub-national, provincial, and soum (county) Citizen Representative Khural (local governing councils).
The two-week campaign period kicked off on September 26, and 15 political parties and one coalition are competing vigorously. Despite the wide variety of political parties competing, most of the political parties are only competing in the capital city, Ulaanbaatar, while Mongolia’s two major political parties, the center-left Mongolian People’s Party (MPP) and center-right Democratic Party (DP), which have dominated local and rural politics over the last three decades, are running in constituencies across the country. Ulaanbaatar is home to half the country’s population, making the political parties’ agendas for addressing pressing issues in the city particularly impactful. The Democratic Party (DP), led by mayoral candidate T. Battsogt, is running under the slogan “City for Children” and is focusing on child-friendly urban development, addressing the housing crisis, improving employment, and promoting transparency in city governance. The DP is criticizing the Mongolian People’s Party (MPP) for what it describes as the party’s mismanagement of the past eight years in the capital. In the eight local elections held since 1992, the DP has won only once, in 2012.
The ruling MPP, led by Mayor Kh. Nyambaatar, is promoting a platform titled “Urban Revival 20-Minute City,” which proposes restructuring the capital into 42 districts and ambitious mega-projects such as a subway system and satellite cities to ease traffic congestion and improve public services.
However, both parties face resistance from the smaller HUN Party and National Coalition, which are claiming that Ulaanbaatar’s government has only addressed surface-level issues, likening the MPP’s actions to “putting out fires” rather than proactively tackling root problems of urban management and development. Furthermore, the HUN Party is strongly advocating for a woman mayor, citing global examples where female leadership has rapidly improved the quality of urban life.
Why should we care?
While the ruling MPP Party has won virtually all local elections over the last three decades, smaller political parties and the larger opposition Democratic Party hope to flip the script this time. Unlike the parliamentary elections in June 2024, which operated under significant electoral reforms, the local elections are being conducted under the older 2020 Law on the Elections of the Citizens’ Representative Khurals of Provinces, the Capital, Soums, and Districts. Amendments to this law were not deliberated or adopted in time by Mongolia’s parliament and so certain
changes, such as the 30 percent gender quota for candidates that applied to parliamentary elections, do not apply to these local elections. This fact has drawn criticism, particularly due to the historically low representation of women in local government, which has consistently ranged between 13-20 percent. However, greater attention should be given to local elections, as relatively recent reforms, including the 2020 Law on Administrative and Territorial Units and their Governance and the 2021 Law on the Legal Status of the Capital City Ulaanbaatar, grant local governments with expanded budgetary and administrative powers. This increased authority means that local governments now have a more significant impact on citizens’ lives than ever before.
What can be done?
With just days remaining in the short campaign period, political parties and candidates are actively discussing top issues including high prices, air pollution, and traffic congestion, which only worsens in the soon-approaching winter months. As voter turnout in local elections has traditionally been low compared to that of parliamentary elections, civic education initiatives remain important as ever. Media coverage and analysis of party platforms and their stances are essential for citizens to make informed decisions. The campaign officially ends on the evening of October 9, with voting day, a national holiday, on October 11.
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