President Lee's approval rating drops to 56.5%, hitting a new low after a 6.8%p decline [Realmeter] (Comprehensive)

"Lee Chun-seok's alleged anonymous stock trading and controversies surrounding Cho Kuk and Yoon Mee-hyang's pardons deepen the downward trend."

Democratic Party at 48.4% vs. People Power Party at 30.3%... The support gap between the two parties narrows from 27.3%p to 18.1%p.

President Lee Jae-myung checking the time [Yonhap News File Photo]

A public opinion poll released on the 11th shows that President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating for his state administration has fallen to 56.5%, the lowest since he took office.

According to the poll conducted by Realmeter from August 4-8 at the request of Energy Economy Newspaper, with 2,506 eligible voters aged 18 and over nationwide, 56.5% responded that President Lee's performance was 'good'.

This figure is 6.8 percentage points (p) lower than the previous week and represents the largest drop since President Lee's inauguration.

'Poor performance' was cited by 38.2%, an increase of 6.8%p from the previous week. 'Don't know' accounted for 5.2%.

Realmeter explained that the downward trend in approval ratings was exacerbated by the controversy over capital gains tax on stocks and the alleged anonymous stock trading by Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Chun-seok in the early period of the survey, and later by the controversy surrounding special pardons for former Cho Kuk of the Cho Kuk Innovation Party and former lawmaker Yoon Mee-hyang for Liberation Day.

The analysis also stated, "Actions by Democratic Party leader Chung Chae-won, such as 'passing over' the People Power Party, which deepened the confrontation, have elicited backlash from conservatives and moderates."

Looking at the positive evaluations of President Lee's state administration by region, Daegu and Gyeongbuk showed the lowest approval rating at 38.8%, a decrease of 18.0%p from the previous survey. Busan, Ulsan, and Gyeongnam also saw a decrease of 17.4%p, resulting in 44.8%.

Gwangju and Jeolla recorded the highest approval rating at 78.2%, but this was a decrease of 3.5%p from the previous week.

Other regions reported ratings of 61.9% for Incheon/Gyeonggi, 56.8% for Gangwon, 56.1% for Daejeon/Sejong/Chungcheong, and 54.6% for Seoul.

By age group, the approval rating for those in their 20s was the lowest at 43.5%. Those aged 70 and over (45.3%) showed the largest decline, down 12.9%p from the previous week.

Among the primary support groups for President Lee, the 40s and 50s recorded the highest positive evaluations at 70.0% and 66.0% respectively, though these were down 6.5%p and 8.6%p from the previous week.

By ideological leaning, 85.6% of progressives positively evaluated President Lee's state administration, while only 28.4% of conservatives did. Moderates showed a support rating of 58.5%, down 6.6%p from the previous survey.

In a party support poll conducted on August 7-8 among 1,006 eligible voters aged 18 and over nationwide, the Democratic Party recorded 48.4% and the People Power Party recorded 30.3%.

The Democratic Party's support fell by 6.1%p from the previous week, dropping below 50% for the first time in seven weeks.

The People Power Party rose by 3.1%p, regaining the 30% range for the first time in six weeks.

The gap in support between the two parties narrowed from 27.3%p last week to 18.1%p.

Realmeter analyzed, "It appears that the Democratic Party has seen a significant outflow of supporters in regions like Yeongnam and Honam due to internal ethical issues such as the alleged anonymous stock trading by lawmaker Lee Chun-seok, as well as extreme confrontations between the ruling and opposition parties regarding the broadcasting laws and the 'passing over' of the People Power Party, which have fueled distrust."

Regarding the People Power Party's rise in support, it was explained as "a phản ứng (backlash) due to the Democratic Party's unfavorable issues and increased interest in the party's primary elections."

The Cho Kuk Innovation Party garnered 4.0%, the New Reform Party 3.1%, and the Progressive Party 1.4%.

Both polls were conducted using the wireless automated response method.

The margin of error for the presidential approval rating poll was ±2.0%p at a 95% confidence level, and the margin of error for the party support poll was ±3.1%p at a 95% confidence level. 

The response rates were 5.2% and 4.5% respectively. For detailed information, refer to the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission website. Yonhap News