President Lee Jae Myung's Approval Rating Drops Below 40 Percent for First Time

President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating has fallen below 40 percent for the first time since he took office in June last year. According to a Realmeter poll commissioned by the EKN newspaper, 38.9 percent of 2,509 respondents aged 18 and older gave a positive assessment of Lee's performance. This represents a 1.3 percentage point decrease from the previous week. Meanwhile, his disapproval rating rose 1.8 percentage points to 58.7 percent.

Realmeter attributed the decline to public dissatisfaction over housing prices and rents, as well as controversy regarding the presidential office's refusal to appoint a Supreme Court justice nominee. The pollster also cited public distrust of the police following a missing woman incident on Jeju island. One center-right source added that infighting within the ruling camp contributed to the decline.

Demographic data indicated that the sharpest drop in support occurred among voters in their 50s, where approval fell 7.5 percentage points to 40.8 percent. Approval also declined among voters in their 40s, 60s, and those aged 70 and older, though support among voters in their 30s rose by 8.8 percentage points. Regionally, the steepest decline was recorded in Daejeon, Sejong, and the Chungcheong region.

The survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level. In a separate survey of 1,006 individuals, the approval rating for the ruling Democratic Party rose 1.2 percentage points to 43.1 percent, while the main opposition People Power Party rose 0.1 percentage point to 37.7 percent.