[Polpol News] President Yoon's Approval Rating on 2nd Anniversary of Inauguration Ranks 'Lowest' Among Past Presidents

Lowest at 24% in Gallup Regular Poll
Kim Dae-jung (49%) - Moon Jae-in (47%) Ranked Highest

The approval rating for President Yoon Seok-yeol's administration, marking its 2nd anniversary, has been reported as the lowest among all past presidents.

According to a regular public opinion poll conducted by Gallup from the 7th to the 9th (nationwide wireless telephone interviews with 1,000 adults aged 18 and over), President Yoon's positive job performance rating was 24%, while the negative rating was 67%. This approval rating is the lowest among all presidents since the 13th president, Roh Tae-woo, at their 2nd anniversary in office.

The president with the highest approval rating at the 2nd anniversary among past presidents was former President Kim Dae-jung, with a positive rating of 49% and a negative rating of 20%. Former President Moon Jae-in followed with a positive rating of 47% and a negative rating of 45%.

Among past presidents, former President Roh Tae-woo had the lowest ratings with a positive rating of 28% and a negative rating of 40%. Former President Park Geun-hye recorded a positive rating of 33% and a negative rating of 58%, while former President Roh Moo-hyun had a positive rating of 33% and a negative rating of 55%. Park Geun-hye’s approval rating declined around her 2nd anniversary in early 2015 due to controversies such as year-end tax adjustments, cigarette tax increases, and the guilty verdict on former National Intelligence Service chief Won Sei-hoon’s election interference. Roh Moo-hyun’s approval rating was low due to scandals involving the appointment of the Deputy Minister of Education. In President Yoon’s case, his approval rating was in the 30% range before the general election but sharply declined after the election defeat.

According to the Gallup survey, President Yoon’s positive rating among his main support base, the conservative bloc, is 39%, which is lower than the negative rating of 52%. Among centrists, the positive rating is 20% (negative rating 70%), and among progressives, it is 7% (negative rating 89%). Overall, his support base is weak.

Kim Bong-shin, director of Metavoice and an expert in public opinion polling, said, "It is questionable whether it is possible to govern relying on specific groups, age brackets, regions, or political orientations. Now, governance should be centered on the interests of the people. In the past, the approach was to pressure certain groups such as labor unions, educators, and doctors by labeling them as cartels, but now it is necessary to focus on pressing livelihood issues like rising prices."

The recent public opinion poll partially reflected the limited impact of the 2nd anniversary press conference. The survey period was from the 7th to the 9th, and the press conference was held on the 9th. Political circles believe that if the approval rating does not rebound even after the press conference, it will inevitably hinder the administration’s ability to secure momentum for governance.

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