Lee's disapproval rating exceeds approval rating for 1st time since inauguration

Lead

President Lee Jae Myung's disapproval rating has surpassed his approval rating for the first time since he took office in June last year, according to a survey released on June 22. The poll, conducted by Realmeter and commissioned by the EKN newspaper, showed Lee's approval rating dropped 4.8 percentage points from a week earlier to 46.7 percent, while disapproval climbed 5.5 percentage points to 49.7 percent. Realmeter said the decline was driven by public concerns over the poor management of ballot shortages during the June 3 local elections and deepening internal strife within the ruling Democratic Party (DP).

Despite positive factors, including the outcome of the president's trip to Europe and the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index topping the historic 9,000-point level, the pollster noted that concerns over widening inequality in the asset market intensified, contributing to lower support among moderates and voters in greater Seoul.

Coverage comparison

A follow-up survey reported the following week showed Lee's approval rating falling for a sixth consecutive week to 46.5 percent, down 0.2 percentage points from the previous week. Disapproval also fell slightly, by 0.2 percentage point to 49.5 percent, according to the June 29 poll, which marked the second consecutive week that approval stayed below 50 percent. As with the earlier survey, the decline was attributed to the prolonged controversy over the National Election Commission's mishandling of ballots during the June 3 local elections, growing concerns about the economy and livelihoods, and political disputes over the proposed elimination of the prosecution's right to conduct supplementary investigations.

Both weekly surveys, conducted by the same polling firm and approved by the EKN newspaper, involved about 2,500 respondents aged 18 and older and had a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level. A separate survey of approximately 1,000 respondents, also by Realmeter to approximate party support, had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

Key claims

The June 22 poll marks the first time Lee's disapproval rating exceeded his approval rating since his inauguration. A senior pollster said that decline was spurred by ballot-shortage controversy and DP's internal conflict.

By the second week (the end of June), the disapproval fleet that leaned over 50 percent went into a second week uninterrupted, while the approval rating logged its six-week consecutive decline.

The economic and political factors, heading the party support indicators, fluctuated. According to the independent party track, support for the ruling party ranged between 40 percent and 41 percent during the period, while the main opposition People Power Party ranged between 42 and 42.3 percent.