Moon's approval rating tops 80 pct: survey

President Moon Jae-in's approval rating exceeded 80 percent, a survey showed Monday, underscoring high public support for the new liberal leader.

In a survey conducted from last Monday through Friday by local pollster Realmeter, Moon garnered 81.6 percent support. Of the 2,526 eligible voters who participated in the survey, 10.1 percent disapproved of him, while 8.3 percent didn't have an opinion.

It was the pollster's first survey on Moon's approval rating since he was inaugurated right after his victory in the May 9 vote. The election was triggered by the March 10 ouster of former President Park Geun-hye, currently on trial for alleged corruption.

Former Presidents Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-back received 54.8 percent and 76 percent, respectively, in the first week after their inaugurations in 2013 and 2008, the pollster said.

In the latest survey, the ruling Democratic Party garnered 53.3 percent, up 8.6 percentage points from a week earlier. The main opposition Liberty Korea Party scored 12.4 percent, down 0.6 percentage point, while the People's Party and Bareun Party scored 7.7 percent and 6.8 percent, respectively.

The survey's margin of error was plus or minus 1.9 percentage points with a 95 percent confidence level. (Yonhap)