"Kim Geon-hee, 60.6% Say She Should Focus Only on Supporting Role"…Over Half of Conservatives Negative About 'Public Activities'

President Yoon Suk-yeol and his wife Kim Keon-hee welcomed U.S. President Joe Biden on the afternoon of the 21st of last month at the National Museum of Korea in Yongsan, Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] A public opinion survey revealed that more than half of respondents believe that Kim Geon-hee, wife of President Yoon Seok-yeol, should focus solely on supporting her husband in the future.

According to a survey conducted by Next Research on behalf of SBS from the 8th to the 9th, targeting 1,010 men and women nationwide aged 18 and older, 60.6% responded that it is better for Kim Geon-hee to concentrate on supporting President Yoon.

On the other hand, there were many negative opinions regarding her public activities. Only 31.3% thought it would be better for her to engage in public activities as the president’s wife, about half the proportion. Among political orientations, 64.5% of centrists were negative about Kim’s public activities, and 56.6% of conservatives also expressed negative views.

Regarding President Yoon’s governance after one month in office, 49% responded that he is doing well, while 29.8% said he is not doing well.

The most common reason for positive evaluations was his decisive handling of tasks (38.5%). This was followed by a merit-based cabinet selection (17.4%), willingness for national unity (16.9%), and opening the Blue House and relocating the presidential office (13.9%).

The biggest reason for negative evaluations was “favoritism toward close associates” (45.8%). This was followed by the unilateral relocation of the presidential office (26.7%), lack of communication skills (14.3%), and selective fulfillment of campaign promises (6.3%).

Regarding the appointment of many former prosecutors to the presidential office, 55.5% responded that it was inappropriate, which was higher than the 38.7% who thought it was appropriate.

Opinions on President Yoon’s initiatives to open the Blue House and relocate the presidential office to Yongsan were divided, with 47.4% saying “well done” and 46% saying “poorly done,” within the margin of error (±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level).

This survey was conducted via telephone interviews (86% mobile, 14% landline) with a response rate of 13.7%. For more details, please refer to the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission website.