[PollPollNews] 74% Say President Lee Did the Right Thing by Withdrawing Lee Jin Sook's Nomination

NBS Poll
President Lee Jae Myung's Approval Drops 1 Percentage Point to 64%
Both Democratic Party and People Power Party See Decline

President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating for state affairs remained in the mid-60% range, while support for both the Democratic Party and the People Power Party showed a downward trend.

According to the National Barometer Survey (NBS) conducted by Embrain Public, Kstat Research, Korea Research, and Hankook Research from July 21 to 23, 2025, targeting 1,001 men and women aged 18 and older nationwide through mobile phone interviews (margin of error: ±3.1 percentage points at the 95% confidence level; response rate: 17.4%), the positive evaluation of President Lee’s administration stood at 64%, down 1 percentage point from two weeks prior. The negative evaluation also fell by 1 percentage point to 22%.

Regarding trust in state administration, 64% responded that they "trust" the president, while 28% said they "do not trust" him.

President Lee Jae Myung. 2026.06.26 National Assembly Press Photographers Association Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers Association

In terms of party support, the Democratic Party recorded a support rate of 43%, down 2 percentage points from two weeks ago. The People Power Party also saw its support fall by 2 percentage points to 17%. The Cho Kuk Innovation Party and the Reform New Party each recorded 4%, while the Progressive Party stood at 1%. The proportion of respondents who withheld their opinion (none + don't know/no response) was 29%.

Regarding President Lee’s withdrawal of the nomination of Lee Jin Sook, the controversial candidate for Minister of Education during the confirmation hearing process, 74% of respondents said it was "the right thing to do," a very high figure. Only 6% said it was "the wrong thing to do."

On the issue of relocating the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries from Sejong City to Busan, 61% said they "support" the move, while 20% "oppose" it. In the Busan/Ulsan/Gyeongnam region, which is the planned relocation site, support reached 74%.

Regarding inter-Korean unification, 57% responded that "it is acceptable to continue living in the current state without unification," which was higher than the 39% who said "unification is absolutely necessary." In particular, the proportion of respondents who saw unification as necessary was lower among those aged 18-29 (33%) and those in their 30s (29%). As for the preferred future inter-Korean system, "two states with free movement" was the most favored at 49%, while "a unified single state" and "the current two-state system" each received 20%.

Regarding the transfer of wartime operational control, 54% said they "support" it, while 32% "oppose" it. However, among the 537 respondents who supported the transfer, 70% said "it should be discussed over time," indicating a preference for a cautious approach.

Favorability ratings toward the five neighboring countries were as follows: the United States 62%, Japan 45%, China 26%, North Korea 20%, and Russia 17%. Compared to a similar period last year, favorability toward the United States dropped by 12 percentage points, while favorability toward North Korea rose by 10 percentage points. Regarding President Lee’s planned attendance at the 80th anniversary of China’s Victory Day in September, 48% said they "support" it, while 37% "oppose" it.

For more detailed information about the public opinion survey, please refer to the website of the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission.