Yoon’s approval rating drops to record low as controversies and allegations persist

President Yoon Suk Yeol’s approval rating has fallen to 19 percent, according to a survey released on Friday, marking a record low since he took office in May 2022.

President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks at the Korea-Asean summit held at the National Convention Center in Vientiane, Laos on Oct. 10. [NEWS1]

President Yoon Suk Yeol’s approval rating has fallen to 19 percent, according to a survey released on Friday, marking a record low since he took office in May 2022.

The opinion poll, conducted by Gallup Korea from Oct. 29 to 31, questioned 1,005 individuals aged 18 and older. It has a confidence interval of 95 percent and a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

According to Gallup Korea, only 19 percent of respondents approved of the president’s performance, indicating another steep decline in Yoon’s chronically low popularity.

Approximately 17 percent of respondents attributed their disapproval to allegations surrounding first lady Kim Keon Hee, while 14 percent cited economic and livelihood issues.

Another 7 percent identified poor communication skills as a primary reason for their disapproval, while an equal 7 percent rated him as generally incompetent.

However, 33 percent of respondents positively evaluated Yoon’s foreign policy, and 8 percent approved of his handling of expanding medical school admissions.

According to Gallup Korea, around 90 percent of supporters of the liberal Democratic Party (DP) and individuals in their 40s expressed negative opinions of Yoon, while traditionally conservative groups, such as People Power Party (PPP) supporters, were divided, with 44 percent rating the president positively and 44 percent viewing him negatively.

In a separate survey conducted by Gallup Korea, the PPP and DP each recorded 32 percent support from respondents, while the minor liberal Rebuilding Korea Party and minor conservative Reform Party scored 7 and 2 percent, respectively.

The DP revealed a phone recording between President Yoon and Myung Tae-kyun, a self-proclaimed “political broker,” on Thursday, alleging that the president and first lady illegally intervened in the conservative party’s nominations during the 2022 local elections.

Gallup Korea said that the political impact of the phone recording on public opinion would become evident in subsequent findings.

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]