[PolPol News] President Lee's Approval Rating at 56%...Down 6 Percentage Points

Party Approval Ratings: Democratic Party 40%, People Power Party 26%

The percentage of people who positively evaluated President Lee Jaemyung's administration dropped by 6 percentage points from last week, reaching 56%.

According to a public opinion poll released by Gallup on December 12 (conducted from December 9 to 11 through wireless phone interviews with 1,000 men and women aged 18 or older nationwide, with a margin of error of ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level and a response rate of 11.5%), President Lee's approval rating was found to be 56%. The negative assessment rose by 5 percentage points from last week to 34%. This marks a return to the level seen before the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, when positive evaluations had increased due to diplomatic achievements.

Yonhap News Agency

In the positive evaluations, the proportion citing diplomacy decreased, while in the negative evaluations, a range of domestic issues such as the economy, judiciary, and security were mentioned. Among those with a negative view, 15% cited the economy and people's livelihoods, and 9% pointed to issues of morality and the president's avoidance of his own trial. Notably, the proportion of respondents who cited real estate policy and loan regulations increased by 3 percentage points. Gallup analyzed that "although the Unification Church incident was not directly mentioned as a reason for the negative assessment of the president's performance, it did have some impact on the overall perception of the president and the ruling party."

In terms of party support, the Democratic Party of Korea's approval rating fell by 3 percentage points from last week to 40%, while the People Power Party's approval rating rose by 2 percentage points to 26%. The Cho Kuk Innovation Party stood at 3%, and the Reform New Party at 4%. Regarding next year's local elections, which are six months away, 42% said that more candidates from the ruling party should be elected, while 36% said that more candidates from the opposition parties should win. For more details, refer to the website of the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission.