[AKyung Poll] Daejangdong Project, 'Lee Jae-myung Responsible' 53.7%... Decrease of 2.8%p

'People Power Responsibility' Response Rises 3.3%p to 37.5%
Candidate Lee Jae-myung Demonstrates Persuasive Power to the Public at Daejang-dong Audit

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] Regarding the allegations of preferential treatment in the Daejang-dong development, the view that Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party of Korea's presidential candidate, bears significant responsibility has slightly decreased compared to the previous survey. This is analyzed as Lee's persuasive power toward the public being demonstrated through the so-called 'Daejang-dong National Assembly audit.'

On the 26th, Asia Economy commissioned Win-Gi Korea Consulting to conduct a public opinion survey (100% mobile phone virtual numbers, automated response) from the 23rd to 24th targeting 1,024 voters nationwide aged 18 and over. When asked about perceptions related to the Seongnam Daejang-dong development project, 53.7% responded that "Lee Jae-myung, who designed the project and held command over the Seongnam Urban Development Corporation at the time, bears significant responsibility." While more than half of the public still holds Lee responsible, it is notable that this figure decreased by 2.8 percentage points compared to the previous survey (September 9-10, 56.5%).

Lee's refusal to back down against the People Power Party's offensive regarding lobbying and preferential treatment allegations related to the Daejang-dong development, and his direct confrontation by attending two National Assembly audits on the 18th and 20th, is evaluated as having shifted the situation. After being finally selected as the Democratic Party's presidential candidate on the 10th, Lee did not immediately resign from his position as Governor of Gyeonggi Province and actively responded to the Daejang-dong controversy, stating he would fulfill the audit schedule. At a press conference following his resignation as governor the previous day, he reiterated, "No matter how much you dig, nothing will come out 100%."

On the other hand, the response that "the ruling party at the time and the People Power Party, which was the majority in the Seongnam City Council, bear significant responsibility for blocking public development" rose to 37.5%, up 3.3 percentage points from the previous survey (34.2%). "Don't know" accounted for 8.8%. At the time of the Daejang-dong development push, the Seongnam City Council, controlled by the Saenuri Party (the predecessor of the People Power Party), opposed Lee's opinion to develop the Daejang-dong area publicly. When public development was blocked, Lee established the Seongnam Urban Development Corporation to pursue public development of housing sites including Daejang-dong. Lee claims that the People Power Party is behind the Daejang-dong allegations, calling it the "People Power Party Hwacheon Daeyu Gate."

By age group, except for those aged 60 and over (60.0%→63.1%), the response that "Lee bears significant responsibility" decreased compared to the previous survey in all other age groups: 18-29 (66.3%→56.6%), 30s (64.0%→58.1%), 40s (38.8%→36.7%), and 50s (53.6%→50.3%).

By region, this trend appeared in most areas except Seoul (59.9%→64.8%) and Gangwon-Jeju (42.9%→53.3%). Lee's stronghold of Gyeonggi-Incheon (56.5%→49.2%), as well as Daejeon-Sejong-Chungcheong (48.5%→46.8%), Daegu-Gyeongbuk (68.8%→59.2%), Busan-Ulsan-Gyeongnam (69.0%→65.2%), and Gwangju-Jeonbuk-Jeonnam (33.0%→30.3%) all saw a decrease in the perception of Lee's responsibility. Among supporters of the Democratic Party and the Open Democratic Party, only 18.8% and 13.3%, respectively, judged Lee to bear significant responsibility. In contrast, 90.9% of People Power Party supporters emphasized Lee's responsibility.

This survey was conducted by Asia Economy through Win-Gi Korea Consulting from the 23rd to 24th targeting voters aged 18 and over nationwide, with 1,024 respondents and an overall response rate of 6.6%. The survey method was wireless ARS using 100% mobile phone virtual numbers, and the sample was extracted with weighted values by gender, age, and region based on the resident registration population as of the end of January 2021 by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety (cell weighting). The sampling error is ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level. For detailed survey information, please refer to the Win-Gi Korea Consulting website or the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission website.