[PollPollNews] President Lee and Democratic Party Approval Ratings Fall Together... Prosecutorial Reform Controversy Weighs Down

Realmeter Opinion Poll
Presidential Approval Rating Drops by 3.7 Percentage Points to 53.1%
Democratic Party at 42.5%, People Power Party at 37.0%

President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating for his management of state affairs, as well as the approval rating for the Democratic Party of Korea, have both declined. The exposure of disagreements between the government and the party over prosecutorial reform, as well as allegations of nomination fund scandals involving ruling party figures, appear to have acted as negative factors.

According to a public opinion poll released on January 19 by the polling agency Realmeter (conducted at the request of Energy Economy News from January 12 to 16, targeting 2,516 voters aged 18 or older nationwide, using a wireless telephone ARS survey method, with a margin of error of ±2.0 percentage points at a 95% confidence level and a response rate of 4.5%), President Lee's approval rating for state affairs was found to be 53.1%, down 3.7 percentage points from the previous week's survey. As a result, President Lee's approval rating reversed its upward trend after three weeks and dropped from the mid-50% range to the low 50% range. The disapproval rating rose by 4.4 percentage points from the previous week to 42.2%.

President Lee Jae-myung is heading to Sangchunjae at the Blue House, where a luncheon event inviting party leaders was held on the 16th. Photo by Yonhap News

Examining President Lee's approval rating in more detail, notable declines were observed in Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province (down 8.0 percentage points, from 48.0% to 40.0%), among those in their 20s (down 10.2 percentage points, from 43.7% to 33.5%), and among those in their 70s (down 5.2 percentage points, from 55.1% to 49.9%). By ideological orientation, support among progressives-traditionally strong for President Lee-fell by 3.3 percentage points (from 84.7% to 81.4%).

Realmeter explained, "Despite economic and diplomatic achievements such as the KOSPI surpassing 4,800 and the Korea-Japan summit, the exposure of disagreements between the government and the party over prosecutorial reform bills (the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency Act and the Prosecution Service Act), as well as overlapping morality controversies such as allegations of nomination fund scandals involving ruling party figures, led to a decline in approval ratings."

According to a separate party support poll (conducted at the request of Energy Economy News from January 15 to 16, targeting 1,004 voters aged 18 or older nationwide, using a wireless telephone ARS survey method, with a margin of error of ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level and a response rate of 3.8%), the Democratic Party's approval rating dropped by 5.3 percentage points from the previous week to 42.5%. The People Power Party's approval rating rose by 3.5 percentage points to 37.0%. The Reform Party and the Cho Kuk Innovation Party recorded 3.3% and 2.5%, respectively.

Realmeter stated, "While the Democratic Party's approval rating turned downward for the first time in four weeks, the People Power Party rebounded after four weeks," adding, "The gap between the two parties has narrowed to within the margin of error for the first time in four months."

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