Key facts
- President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating fell 0.5 percentage points to 37.4% last week.
- Negative assessments of Lee's job performance dropped 0.3 percentage points to 59.8%.
- Support for the ruling Democratic Party rose 3.8 percentage points to 42.5%.
- Support for the People Power Party fell 1 percentage point to 38.4%.
- The poll surveyed 2,515 adults nationwide from Monday to Friday.
SEOUL, Oct. 5 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating dipped slightly last week, falling 0.5 percentage points to 37.4 percent, after a two-week increase, according to a poll released Monday. The survey, conducted by Realmeter on 2,515 adults nationwide from the previous Monday through Friday, also showed a 0.3 percentage point drop in negative assessments of Lee's job performance, bringing it to 59.8 percent.
Lee's approval rating had seen a rise for two consecutive weeks, partly due to his clarification of key political issues during a press conference on September 18. Realmeter attributed the recent dip to negative factors such as controversy over the establishment of new investigative agencies, the appointment of the SCIA chief, a recent land mine blast inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), diplomatic friction with Ukraine, and concerns over housing rental prices in the Seoul metropolitan area.
In a separate poll of 1,009 voters, the ruling Democratic Party saw its support increase by 3.8 percentage points to 42.5 percent, while the main opposition People Power Party's support fell by 1 percentage point to 38.4 percent. Both surveys were commissioned by the EKN newspaper.