President's approval nears 60% in second week of term

A survey found that President Lee Jae Myung had an approval rating of 59.3 percent in his second week on the job, with massive support from those in their 40s and 50s and huge backing in Gwangju and the Jeolla provinces.

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting with lawmakers at the presidential residence in Yongsan, central Seoul, on June 22. [YONHAP]

A public opinion poll found that nearly 60 percent of respondents rated President Lee Jae Myung’s state administration positively during his second week in office.

A survey commissioned by Energy Economy News and conducted by Realmeter from last Monday to Friday with 2,514 respondents aged 18 or older nationwide showed that 59.3 percent of respondents said the president was “doing well,” while 33.5 percent said he was “doing poorly,” according to Realmeter on Monday.

The “doing well” response rose by 0.7 percentage points from the previous week, while the “doing poorly” response declined by 0.7 percentage points. Respondents who answered “not sure” accounted for 7.2 percent.

Realmeter noted that the president’s approval rating climbed earlier last week, driven by the Group of 7 summit and the Kospi index surpassing 3,000. However, it declined toward the end of the week due to negative issues such as controversy over Prime Minister nominee Kim Min-seok’s vetting process and signs of overheating in the real estate market.

By region, the Gwangju and North and South Jeolla regions had the highest positive response rate at 78.9 percent, followed by Jeju at 64.8 percent and Incheon and Gyeonggi at 62.3 percent. The positive rating exceeded 50 percent in all regions except Daegu and North Gyeongsang, which recorded 49.2 percent.

By age group, all but those in their twenties gave positive ratings of over 50 percent. Respondents in their forties showed the highest support at 73.3 percent, followed by those in their fifties at 70.2 percent and thirties at 54.9 percent. The approval rate among those in their twenties was the lowest at 49.6 percent.

Prime Minister nominee Kim Min-seok attends a meeting at the Daegu Digital Innovation Promotion Agency in Daegu on June 20. [NEWS1]

When asked about the outlook for Lee’s future performance, 60.5 percent responded that he “will do well,” up 1.1 percentage points from the previous survey. Those who said he “will not do well” accounted for 34.3 percent, down 0.6 percentage points from a week earlier. “Not sure” responses accounted for 5.3 percent.

In a separate party support poll conducted from Thursday to Friday with 1,008 eligible voters nationwide, the Democratic Party received 48.4 percent, down 1.5 percentage points from the previous survey.

The People Power Party’s support rose by 1 percentage point to 31.4 percent, narrowing the gap between the two major parties to 17 percentage points. The Reform Party recorded 4.9 percent, the Rebuilding Korea Party 2.9 percent and the Jinbo Party 1.6 percent.

Both surveys were conducted using automated telephone interviews via mobile phones. The presidential approval rating survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.0 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level, with a response rate of 6.2 percent. The party support poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points and a response rate of 5.6 percent.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff. BY KIM JI-HYE [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]