[AKYUNG Poll] Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, Reform Over Abolition... 44% of Citizens Support "Name and Duties Change"

Paper Response Rate at 29.9%, Higher Male Proportion
Both Male and Female Candidates Advocate Reform and Renaming

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] Regarding the future of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, which has been the subject of much controversy over whether it should be reorganized or abolished in the next government, 44% of our citizens believe that it is better to reorganize it by ‘changing its name and duties.’

On the 3rd, Asia Economy commissioned Win-G Korea Consulting to conduct a public opinion survey (100% mobile phone virtual numbers, automated response) targeting 1,009 voters aged 18 and over nationwide from the 28th to 29th of last month. In response to the question, “There has been much controversy recently in the political sphere about whether to maintain this organization. How do you think it should be handled in future government organizations?” 44.2% of respondents answered that the organization should be reorganized by changing its name and duties. The response that the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family itself should be abolished was 29.9%. Those who said it should be maintained as is accounted for 17.2%, and 8.8% answered that they did not know.

Presidential candidates from both ruling and opposition parties also agree that the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family needs to be revised. Regardless of whether Lee Jae-myung or Yoon Seok-youl becomes president, the ministry will disappear according to their pledges. Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, supports abolishing the ministry and advocates reorganizing it into a ‘Ministry of Gender Equality and Family.’ Yoon Seok-youl, the People Power Party presidential candidate, has announced a pledge to abolish the ministry and establish a ‘Ministry of Gender Equality and Family for Gender Equality.’ Lee argues that “it is not right to be discriminated against simply because one is male,” while Yoon has stated that “the ministry treats men as potential criminals.” This is interpreted as an attempt to appeal to the male demographic in their 20s and 30s, who largely favor abolishing the ministry, but it has drawn much criticism from women’s groups.

Meanwhile, 49.7% of women supported reorganizing the ministry, whereas among men, 40.8% favored abolition. Among those in their 30s (51.9%), supporters of the Justice Party (57.4%), and the Open Democratic Party (58.7%), more than half responded that the ministry should be reorganized. Although the abolition response did not exceed half, it was relatively higher among those in their 20s (38.6%) and supporters of the People Power Party (40.0%). Among the politically unaffiliated (42.%), the response favoring reorganization was higher.

Among progressives, 51.4% supported reorganization, but conservatives showed little difference between reorganization (38.5%) and abolition (37.8%). Centrists responded 44.3% for reorganization and 33.7% for abolition.

▶How was the survey conducted?

This survey was conducted by Asia Economy through Win-G Korea Consulting targeting voters aged 18 and over nationwide from the 28th to 29th of last month, with 1,009 respondents and an overall response rate of 10.7%. The survey method was 100% mobile phone virtual numbers and telephone interviews. 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 from 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-G Korea Consulting website or the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission website.