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| Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl / Yonhap |
Public support for Yoon Seok-youl has bounced back sharply, following his resignation from the post of prosecutor general last week, to lead other presidential hopefuls in South Korea, a poll showed Monday.
The Korea Society Opinion Institute (KSOI) said he has garnered 32.4 percent in the survey of 1,023 likely voters nationwide. Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) ranked second with 24.1 percent followed by the party's leader Lee Nak-yon with 14.9 percent.
The poll on who is fit to become South Korea's next president was conducted last Friday. In the previous KSOI poll, conducted on Jan. 22, Yoon won 14.6 percent. At that time, his support rate was on a steady decline.
Yoon announced his decision to quit on Thursday, protesting the DP's push for a new investigative agency that would further weaken the state prosecution service's power and authority.
"The spirit of the constitution and rule of law, which are the backbone of this country, are being destroyed," he argued.
He did not clarify whether he plans to enter politics, but many expect that he will do so.
Yoon is widely seen as a potential presidential candidate for the opposition bloc, with one year left before the election.
Keen attention is being paid to the impact of his resignation on the April 7 Seoul and Busan mayoral by-elections as well as on the post-election political landscape.
The margin of error of the KSOI's latest survey is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points with a 95 percent confidence level.
Another poll, meanwhile, showed the people are split over whether it is appropriate for the former top prosecutor to become a politician.
In the Realmeter survey of 500 people, aged 18 or older, last Friday, 48 percent gave a positive assessment, while 46.3 percent gave a negative one.
In Seoul, 46.0 percent approved of his possible political career and 45.2 percent expressed disapproval.
Among conservative-minded voters, 60.6 percent said it is appropriate, while 70.1 percent of liberals answered negatively.
The poll's margin of error is plus or minus 4.4 percentage points with a 95 percent confidence level, Realmeter said. (Yonhap)
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