President Lee's approval rating falls to 35.3%...People Power Party 42.6%, Democratic Party 36% [Realmeter]

[Financial News] A poll released on the 26th found that President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating for his handling of state affairs fell again after a week, to 35.3%. The Democratic Party of Korea's rating also edged down, while the People Power Party gained ground, widening the gap between the two parties to beyond the margin of error.
In a survey conducted by pollster Realmeter at the request of Asia Economy from the 19th to the 23rd among 2,517 voters aged 18 or older nationwide, 35.3% gave a positive assessment of President Lee's job performance, down 2.0 percentage points from the previous week. His approval rating, which had rebounded by 2.1 percentage points last week, fell again.
Negative assessments rose 1.9 percentage points to 62.3%. The gap between positive and negative assessments was 27.0 percentage points, while 2.4% said they did not know.
The drop in approval was relatively pronounced in the capital region. Support fell 4.6 percentage points from the previous week to 30.1% in Seoul, and 4.4 points to 34.6% in Incheon and Gyeonggi Province. By age group, it fell 7.0 percentage points among those in their 70s or older and 3.5 points among those in their 20s. By ideological leaning, positive assessments among progressives fell 5.6 percentage points, from 57.7% to 52.1%.
Realmeter said economic issues, including a sharp stock market decline, controversy over delaying the National Pension Service's stock sales, and instability in the jeonse market, had weighed on the president's approval rating. It also said political controversies had an impact, including North Korea's threat to resume loudspeaker broadcasts toward the South, the president's social media (SNS) remarks, and the issue of the head of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency sitting in on a meeting of the State Council of South Korea.
The People Power Party led the Democratic Party of Korea in party support. In a survey of 1,003 adults nationwide conducted on the 22nd and 23rd, the People Power Party rose 1.7 percentage points from the previous week to 42.6%, while the Democratic Party of Korea fell 0.2 points to 36.0%.
The gap between the two parties stood at 6.6 percentage points. This was the first time in about four months—since the second week of June—that the People Power Party had led by more than the margin of error.
Among moderates in particular, support for the People Power Party rose 3.2 percentage points, from 38.8% to 42.0%. By contrast, support for the Democratic Party of Korea fell 1.0 point, from 37.7% to 36.7%, widening the gap between the parties among moderates to 5.3 percentage points.
The Rebuilding Korea Party received 6.7%, the Reform Party 2.6%, and the Progressive Party 0.8%.
Both surveys were conducted using automated responses over wireless telephone. The presidential job performance survey had a margin of error of ±2.0 percentage points at a 95% confidence level and a response rate of 2.8%. The party support survey had a margin of error of ±3.1 percentage points and a response rate of 3.2%. More details are available on the website of the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission.
[email protected] Choi Jong-geun Reporter