President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating rose for the second consecutive week, fueled by positive sentiment toward his diplomacy and economic policies, a survey showed. The poll by Realmeter found 56.7 percent approval, up from the previous week. The upward trend slowed amid stock market declines and political controversy.
President Lee Jae-myung's job approval rating climbed to 56.7 percent in a survey by Realmeter, commissioned by a local news outlet, marking a 3.7 percentage point increase from the previous week. Negative assessments dropped 4.6 points to 38.7 percent.
The pollster attributed the early-week gains to optimism over Lee's diplomatic engagements and economic outlook after the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, a bullish stock market, and his annual budget speech. However, the upward momentum eased later in the week due to declining stocks and growing controversy surrounding the ruling Democratic Party of Korea's bill to suspend criminal trials for a sitting president, which was ultimately shelved.
The main survey polled 2,528 adults from Monday to Friday last week, with a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.
In a separate poll of 1,004 individuals aged 18 and over conducted Thursday and Friday, support for the Democratic Party rose 1.1 points to 46.5 percent, while backing for the main opposition People Power Party fell 3.1 points to 34.8 percent. This survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at 95 percent confidence.
These findings highlight public responses to the early policies of the Lee administration, underscoring the influence of political stability and economic recovery on approval ratings.