President Lee's Approval Rating Rebounds to 59% After South Korea-U.S. Summit [PolPol News]

Gallup Poll: President Lee's Approval Rating Rises by 3 Percentage Points from Last Week
Concerns Raised Over Economic Impact of the Yellow Envelope Act

The approval rating for President Lee Jaemyung's job performance, which had recently been on a downward trend, has rebounded. The South Korea-U.S. summit had a positive impact.

According to a public opinion poll released on the 29th by Korea Gallup (conducted nationwide from the 26th to the 28th among 1,000 people aged 18 and older, using wireless telephone interviews, with a margin of error of ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level and a response rate of 11.8%), 59% of respondents evaluated President Lee's job performance positively. This is an increase of 3 percentage points from last week's survey. The negative evaluation dropped by 5 percentage points to 30%.

The results of the South Korea-U.S. summit appear to have influenced these figures. Among the 594 respondents who gave a positive evaluation, the most cited reason was diplomacy (21%). This was followed by the economy and people's livelihoods at 12%, and "overall doing well" at 11%. Among the 299 respondents who gave a negative evaluation, the most frequently cited reason was also diplomacy (12%), followed by excessive welfare policies (9%) and labor policy (9%).

Korea Gallup analyzed, "This appears to be the result of President Lee's visits to Japan and the United States, as well as the passage of recent bills led by the ruling party, such as the amendment to the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act (commonly known as the Yellow Envelope Act) and the amendment to the Commercial Act."

Regarding the South Korea-U.S. summit, 58% of respondents said it benefited the national interest, while 23% said it did not.

Yonhap News

Regarding the Yellow Envelope Act, 42% expressed support while 38% opposed it. Among progressives, 71% supported it, while 66% of conservatives opposed it. Among moderates, opinions were nearly evenly split (support 42%, oppose 37%). However, regarding its impact on the economy, 31% viewed it positively, while 42% viewed it negatively. 10% responded that it would have no impact.

In terms of party support, the Democratic Party maintained the same approval rating as last week at 44%. Support for the People Power Party dropped by 2 percentage points to 23%. The Reform Party recorded 3%, and the Cho Kuk Innovation Party recorded 2%.

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