After Unified Party's Support Rate Surpasses, Ruling Party Says "A Warning from the People," "Heavy Heart"

Democratic Party 33.4% vs United Party 36.5%... First Lead for United Party Since Founding
DP Lawmakers "Reflecting," "A Whip to Work Harder"

Lee Hae-chan, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the high-level party-government meeting held at the National Assembly on the 12th. From the left, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, Lee Hae-chan, and Floor Leader Kim Tae-nyeon.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] The Democratic Party of Korea is showing signs of spreading a sense of crisis as it has been overtaken in opposition party approval ratings for the first time since the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye. Ruling party figures bowed their heads, accepting the drop in approval ratings as "a whip from the people."

Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, said on the 13th that the biggest factor behind the Democratic Party's approval rating being overtaken by the United Future Party might be the real estate issue.

Lee, a member of the Democratic Party, said in a meeting with reporters after attending a forum at the National Assembly that "while the public acknowledges the need for real estate regulations, the pain and difficulties caused by those policies may have significantly affected the approval ratings."

He emphasized, "We need to make the public understand that it was an inevitable measure to maintain the national community," adding, "Just as one would take care to minimize pain when giving an injection, when implementing strong measures such as tax increases or regulations targeting the entire public, delicate and great consideration is necessary to minimize the pain."

Regarding the party's declining approval ratings, he said, "It seems the public is expecting something new," and stressed, "Politics should always respect the will of the people and improve their lives; this is a whip urging us to make more efforts."

Park Joo-min, a lawmaker running for the Democratic Party leadership election, also bowed his head over the party's falling approval ratings. In a post on his Facebook on the same day, he said, "Seeing the recent drop in approval ratings makes me deeply contemplate the party's innovation and future. Despite the ongoing party convention, the approval ratings are falling," adding, "This is clearly a warning from the people to our party."

He continued, "I will communicate with party members and the public. The party should have taken on the role of directly persuading the people, but the results were insufficient," and said, "I deeply feel responsible and reflect on this. I will change. I will increase opportunities and channels for the party to communicate directly with the public."

On the 13th, when a poll agency announced that the Democratic Party of Korea was overtaken in approval ratings by the United Future Party for the first time, Kim Tae-nyeon, the floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea (second from the left), wore a stern expression at the Democratic Party policy coordination meeting held at the National Assembly.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Just less than four months after the ruling party's landslide victory in the April 15 general election, lawmakers are taking the rapid shift in public opinion seriously.

Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Yong-min also reflected on Facebook, saying, "It is time for the party to seriously consider the direction it should take in response to the stern voice and warning of the people."

He added, "We face pressing issues such as the controversial real estate problem, flood recovery, post-COVID economic challenges, and how to realize the values of justice and fairness," and said, "None of these are unimportant, and all affect the lives of the people. We will unite to quietly solve these challenges one by one."

Kim emphasized again, "I will take the lead to ensure that fairness and justice become the standards in solving these issues," and said, "We will strive to be a responsible ruling party that creates policies with a sense of responsibility proportional to our large number of seats."

Lawmaker Kim Nam-guk also apologized on Facebook, saying, "Seeing the reversed approval ratings is truly frustrating and weighs heavily on my heart," and added, "I will take the public sentiment seriously and sincerely communicate with party members and the people. I also realized that the reform process this time is important. I will proceed more cautiously and carefully. I sincerely reflect on this."

Meanwhile, a weekday survey conducted by Realmeter on behalf of TBS from the 10th to the 12th, targeting 1,507 adults nationwide, showed the Democratic Party's approval rating at 33.4%, down 1.7 percentage points from the previous week, while the United Future Party rose 1.9 percentage points to 36.5%. This is the first time since the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye that a conservative party has surpassed the Democratic Party in approval ratings.

In Seoul, the United Future Party rose 4.1 percentage points to 39.8%, nearing 40%. The Democratic Party fell 2.7 percentage points to 32.6%, trailing the United Future Party for the third consecutive week.

The Democratic Party's support declined among progressive-leaning respondents (55.4%, down 3.9 percentage points). The United Future Party's support dropped among conservatives (59.7%, down 3.5 percentage points) but absorbed support from progressives (16.9%, up 5.1 percentage points).

Among centrists, the Democratic Party fell 0.7 percentage points to 30.8%, while the United Future Party rose 2.2 percentage points to 39.6%. For more details, refer to the Realmeter or the Central Election Survey Deliberation Commission websites.