President Yoon's Approval Rating Drops Back to 30% Range... 'Negative Ratings Increase by 5.7%p'

Realmeter Poll
President Yoon's Approval Rating Drops 4.0%p to 38.9%

President Yoon Suk-yeol's approval rating for his administration has fallen back into the 30% range. The backlash against the government's solution to forced labor compensation through a third-party payment method and the labor hour reform allowing a maximum weekly working time of up to 69 hours are interpreted as negative factors affecting the approval rating.

According to a regular public opinion poll conducted by Realmeter on the 13th (commissioned by Media Tribune, conducted from the 6th to the 10th nationwide targeting 2,508 adults aged 18 and over using an ARS automated response method), President Yoon's approval rating dropped 4.0 percentage points from the previous survey to 38.9%. The disapproval rating rose by 5.7 percentage points to 58.9%.

Realmeter explained, "The positive rating fell into the 30% range for the first time in four weeks," adding, "Looking at the daily trend, the decline stopped in the latter half of the week and showed a slight rebound."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 6th, President Yoon officially confirmed the 'third-party payment' method for compensation of forced labor victims without Japan's participation. The opposition parties and civil society strongly opposed this, calling it a humiliating negotiation. On the same day, the government decided to reform the system to allow choosing between a maximum weekly working time of 69 hours or 64 hours. Unlike the existing 52-hour system, the intention is to allow working more when busy and less when not busy. The labor hour reform is also interpreted as having added pressure on public opinion.

The disapproval rating increased in Busan, Ulsan, and Gyeongnam (up 10.9 percentage points), Seoul (up 6.6 percentage points), Gwangju and Jeolla (up 8.0 percentage points), Daegu and Gyeongbuk (up 6.9 percentage points), males (up 6.7 percentage points), people in their 20s (up 13.0 percentage points), 30s (up 11.3 percentage points), 50s (up 5.3 percentage points), 40s (up 5.5 percentage points), the politically unaffiliated (up 14.9 percentage points), Justice Party supporters (up 5.7 percentage points), and centrists (up 5.4 percentage points).

In terms of party support, the Democratic Party's approval rating rose by 1.9 percentage points to 42.6%. The People Power Party's support fell by 2.8 percentage points to 41.5%. The Democratic Party showed notable increases in Gwangju and Jeolla (up 6.2 percentage points) and among people in their 20s (up 6.2 percentage points). The People Power Party experienced significant declines in support among people in their 30s (down 6.6 percentage points) and 20s (down 6.5 percentage points).

For more details, please refer to the website of the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission.