world
South Korean President Lee Jae-myung's Approval Rating Falls Below 60%, Survey Shows
A recent poll indicated that South Korean President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating dropped to 59.5%, marking the first decline below 60% in two months. The survey attributed the fall to concerns over living costs and a controversy involving a government minister's statement on North Korea. A separate poll showed shifts in approval for major political parties.
May 3, 8:49 PM·1m read1 source
Substrate placeholder — needs reviewAudio version
Tap play to generate a narrated version.
Developing·Limited corroboration so far. This page will refresh as more sources emerge.
The poll, conducted by Realmeter and commissioned by the EKN newspaper, surveyed 2,006 respondents aged 18 and older. It found positive assessments of the president's performance at 59.5%, down 2.7 percentage points from previous levels. Negative assessments rose 1.6 percentage points to 35%, with 5.5% of respondents unsure.
Realmeter reported that the decline occurred among centrist voters and groups sensitive to living costs, amid rising oil and consumer prices. The pollster also noted a recent controversy involving Unification Minister Chung Dong-young's reference to North Korea's Kusong region as a site for uranium enrichment facilities.
Yonhap reported that Washington views this as a unilateral disclosure of U.S.-shared intelligence. The survey has a margin of error of 2% at a 95% confidence level.
In a separate Realmeter survey of 1,006 individuals aged 18 and over, conducted on Wednesday and Thursday prior to May 4, 2026, the ruling Democratic Party's approval rating fell 2.7 percentage points to 48.6%. The main opposition People Power Party's approval rating rose 0.9 percentage points to 31.6%.
This poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.
1, 2026, President Lee Jae-myung hosted a Labor Day event at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul. Yonhap reported that this was the first such event held at Cheong Wa Dae, with participation from the country's two major umbrella labor unions.
