[Polpol News] Yoon's Approval Rating Slightly Drops Amid Liberation Day Controversy... Democratic Party's Support Rises After Primary Election

Yoon's Approval Rating Drops 1%p to 27% Compared to a Month Ago
Democratic Party's Approval Rating Rises 4%p to 31%

After two months of recovery following the general election defeat, President Yoon Seok-yeol's approval rating showed a decline amid controversies surrounding the Liberation Day celebration. The Democratic Party of Korea, having gone through the party convention, saw an increase in its support rate.

According to the regular survey for the fourth week of August (conducted from the 20th to the 22nd nationwide on 1,000 people aged 18 and over, randomly selected via mobile phone, with interviewers conducting telephone interviews) released by Gallup on the 23rd, President Yoon's approval rating was measured at 27%. This represents a 1 percentage point drop compared to the previous survey conducted in the fourth week of July. The survey, conducted about a month later, shows a slight decline in approval rating.

President Yoon's approval rating, which hovered in the low to mid-20% range after the general election, rose to the high 20% range in July, raising expectations for a 30% approval rating. However, recent polls indicate that the recovery trend has stalled. In the nationwide index survey (NBS) conducted by Embrain Public, K-Stat Research, Korea Research, and Hankook Research (from the 19th to the 21st, targeting 1,000 men and women aged 18 and over nationwide via mobile phone telephone interviews), President Yoon's approval rating was found to have dropped by 2 percentage points compared to two weeks prior.

In the Gallup survey released that day, among respondents who evaluated President Yoon's job performance negatively (628 people), the main reasons cited included diplomacy (9%), relations with Japan (7%), and views on history (2%). The controversy over historical perspectives triggered by the appointment controversy of Kim Hyung-seok as the director of the Independence Hall appears to have had a negative impact on public opinion overall.

On the other hand, the Democratic Party's approval rating showed an upward trend after the party convention. In the Gallup survey, the Democratic Party's support rate rose by 4 percentage points over the course of a month to 31%. The People Power Party, which had led the Democratic Party by a margin outside the margin of error just a month ago, was surveyed at 32%, a 3 percentage point drop.

For detailed survey results, please refer to the website of the Central Election Survey Deliberation Commission.