Poll on the 3rd Shows President Moon and Ruling Party Support Rates Both Plummet
Jeong Cheong-rae: "Support Will Recover Once Prosecution Reform Is Passed"
Kim Geun-sik: "Finally, the Support Rate's Last Line Has Broken"
Kim Tae-nyeon, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the policy coordination meeting held at the National Assembly on the 3rd. / Photo by Yonhap News
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Ju-hyung] Interpretations differ between the ruling and opposition parties regarding the simultaneous decline in approval ratings of President Moon Jae-in and the Democratic Party of Korea. The Democratic Party claims it reflects "the public's will to complete prosecutorial reform" and expresses their determination to push forward reforms, while the People Power Party criticized it as "an escalation of public dissatisfaction."
Kim Tae-nyeon, floor leader of the Democratic Party, stated at the party's policy coordination meeting on the 3rd, "We will definitely pass reform bills such as the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Office (HOCI) Act and the Fair Economy Three Acts by the 9th," adding, "From now on, it is time for legislative work in the National Assembly."
After the meeting, Kim met with reporters and, regarding the party's approval ratings, said, "I've been in politics for several years, so this level is nothing," but emphasized, "We must work hard and faithfully fulfill the role entrusted to the ruling party." This is interpreted as a sign that they will intensify legislative activities regardless of fluctuations in approval ratings.
Within the party, the decline in approval ratings was also interpreted as "a reprimand from the support base to complete prosecutorial reform." Democratic Party lawmaker Jung Cheong-rae wrote on Facebook that "this drop in approval ratings is a whipping from the people, especially the Democratic Party's support base," analyzing that "it reflects the disappointment of the support base due to the sluggish progress of the HOCI Act and the lukewarm response to Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, showing the whip-like nature of the support base's demand for prosecutorial reform by the Democratic Party."
He added, "'We gave you 180 seats, so what are you doing now?' This is the dissatisfaction and aspiration of the support base," and argued, "If we regroup with renewed determination and cross the river of prosecutorial reform, the support base's approval ratings will recover."
Kim Jong-in, the Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, is speaking at the Emergency Response Committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the 3rd. / Photo by Yonhap News
On the other hand, the opposition party rebutted, saying "the public did not accept the behavior of the government and ruling party." Kim Jong-in, emergency committee chairman of the People Power Party, said at a press conference after the party's emergency committee meeting at the National Assembly that morning, "Recently, public dissatisfaction has escalated due to real estate policies and taxes," and added, "I think the public did not accept the persecution of Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl."
He continued, "I think the ruling party's behavior these days is something the public cannot accept, which naturally caused the Democratic Party's approval ratings to fall."
Kim Geun-sik, head of the People Power Party's Songpa-byeong district in Seoul, wrote on his Facebook that day, "Finally, the approval rating floor has collapsed," and criticized, "This is thanks to the reckless push as if ousting Prosecutor General Yoon was the entirety of prosecutorial reform."
Kim also criticized the ruling party's interpretation of the approval rating drop as a so-called "whipping from the support base." He said, "Instead of reflection and apology, interpreting it as a call to do better prosecutorial reform is a serious misreading and dyslexia," and pointed out, "It is a distortion of reality to see only what one wants to see because they refuse to accept reality."
Meanwhile, a poll conducted by the polling agency Realmeter commissioned by tbs from the 30th of last month to the 2nd of this month showed on the 3rd that the approval ratings of President Moon and the ruling Democratic Party declined simultaneously.
President Moon's positive evaluation of his administration dropped 6.4 percentage points from the previous week to 37.4%, falling into the 30% range, the lowest since the Moon Jae-in administration began.
Meanwhile, the Democratic Party's approval rating fell 5.2 percentage points from the previous week to 28.9%, being overtaken by the People Power Party (31.2%). This is the first time in about four months since the second week of August (then the United Future Party) that the People Power Party has surpassed the Democratic Party in party approval ratings.
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