On Saturday, December 16, President Lee Jae-myung’s approval rating registered a slight decrease, reaching 48.4% in relation to his work leading the country, as shown by new public opinion polls.
The data was collected in a survey carried out by Realmeter for Energy Economics Daily, between the 13th and 16th of the month, with 2,007 individuals over the age of 18 across the country. The result shows that positive approvals fell 0.5 percentage points compared to the previous week.
At the same time, the disapproval index rose 0.3 percentage points, reaching 48.0%. The proportion of participants who did not know or did not want to answer totaled 3.6%.
Realmeter’s analysis points out that, despite positive reviews remaining at around 50% at the beginning of the week, the drop intensified in the final half. This decline was driven by a number of factors, including worsening economic conditions such as rising interest rates and stock market declines. Added to this are internal tensions within the ruling party, especially over supplementary investigative authority, and writer Rhyu Si-min’s recent statements about an “inevitable failure”. Such elements caused a reduction in support, especially among voters in their 40s and progressives, highlighting the fragility of the presidential support base in the face of multiple crises.
A survey focused on party support, carried out for two days from December 15th with 1,005 people over the age of 18, revealed significant fluctuations. The Democratic Party of Korea saw its support drop to 43.1%, a reduction of 1.7 percentage points, while the People Power Party saw its support increase to 40.0%, an increase of 1.9 percentage points compared to the previous survey.
Other parties also had their ratings measured: the Cho Kuk Innovation Party received 3.1% support, the New Reform Party 2.7%, and the Progressive Party 1.3%. The number of undecided voters remained at 8.5%.
Both studies were performed using an automated wireless response system. The presidential approval poll has a margin of error of ±2.2 percentage points, with a 95% confidence level and a 4.0% response rate. The party support survey has a margin of error of ±3.1 percentage points, with the same confidence level of 95%, but with a response rate of 4.1%.
