Sense of crisis grips Yoon as approval rating falls to 6-month low

President Yoon Suk Yeol walks to his official plane at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, Saturday, before departing for a six-day trip to Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Yonhap

President Yoon Suk Yeol’s approval rating fell to a six-month low, raising alarms over his ability to handle state affairs.

A sense of crisis is spreading within the ruling People Power Party (PPP), forcing Yoon and the ruling bloc to focus on addressing rising living costs and other economic difficulties, which will affect the PPP's campaign in the crucial general elections in April next year.

According to a Gallup Korea poll released on Friday, Yoon’s approval rating plunged to 30 percent, down 3 percentage points from a week earlier. His disapproval rating stood at 61 percent, also up 3 percentage points during the same period.

The 30 percent rating is the lowest in the last six months of Gallup Korea's weekly polls after plunging to 27 percent in the second week of April when diplomatic issues aggravated public sentiment toward Yoon, such as the government’s efforts to mend ties with Japan, an allegation that the U.S. had wiretapped the presidential office and the president’s comments on Korea's aid to Ukraine.

The recent fall, however, is attributable to domestic issues, especially economic difficulties, the pollster said. Among negative opinions, 17 percent cited the economy, people's livelihoods and the high cost of living as the reasons for their disapproval of Yoon.

More alarming for Yoon and the PPP is that the rating indicated a noticeable drop in the capital Seoul, and even in the conservative strongholds of Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province. The approval rating in Seoul remained at 25 percent, down 8 percentage points from a week earlier, and Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province were at 48 percent, down 10 percentage points during the same period.

After a crushing defeat in a by-election for Seoul’s Gangseo District mayor on Oct. 11, which was viewed as a barometer for next year’s general elections, the Yoon administration and the PPP have been struggling with the fall in voter support, with criticism mounting against Yoon from within the ruling party itself.

After the survey results were revealed, the party’s former chairman and an ardent critic of Yoon, Lee Jun-seok, wrote on Facebook that “this is going crazy,” criticizing the party’s mainstream members who have been ignoring concerns that the PPP is losing support in Seoul.

“Given there was no critical failure committed by Yoon or the administration last week, and the economic difficulties have been there for a long period of time,the decline in approval rating comes as more individuals are influenced by worsening public sentiment,” said Shin Yul, a political science professor at Myongji University.

“While some people are openly expressing their political complaints, the majority of others are staying silent and don’t share their complaints. Following the election defeat, however, the silent people began to express their complaints, and this is assumed to be amplifying.”

Shin said this sentiment may last for no longer than three weeks, but comes as an alarming sign for the ruling bloc’s campaign for the general election.

President Yoon Suk Yeol shakes hands with a doctor during a meeting on medical reforms at Chungbuk National University in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, Oct. 19. Courtesy of presidential office

In line with this view, Yoon has recently been concentrating his messages on the people's livelihood.

Before departing for a six-day trip to Saudi Arabia and Qatar, Saturday, Yoon told Prime Minister Han Duck-soo that “the Cabinet should make efforts to properly hear the public's sentiment.”

“There are too many Koreans suffering from inflation stemming from external factors, such as rising interest rates and raw material costs,” Yoon was quoted as saying by senior presidential secretary for public relations, Kim Eun-hye. “Public officials should sense the atmosphere. They have to return to the basics and find the right policies,” he said.

Yoon also said in a meeting to discuss measures for medical reforms on Thursday, “Politics should be about the people, not about changing the pace for the election.” During a National Cohesion Committee meeting on Oct. 17, he said, “I and the Cabinet should scrutinize ourselves,” to see if the committee’s advice was being translated into actual policies.

Against this backdrop, the presidential office also appears to be contemplating Yoon’s public schedule after he returns from his Middle East trip. Sources at the office said they are considering the president attending public venues to showcase that the administration is listening to the public's opinions and reflecting on them.

“At this downturn, it is important for Yoon to show that he is listening to the voices of the people by visiting them,” Shin said. “And he has to be careful about making claims about intangible things, namely ideological messages.”

Shin said one of the reasons for the negative public sentiment was Yoon’s remarks on ideology and the political arguments about whether an independence fighter was a communist.

“Everyone is suffering from rising living costs and economic difficulties, and who wants to see politicians fighting about ideology?” Shin asked.

The Gallup Korea poll surveyed 1,000 adults from Oct. 17 to 19. Further information is available on the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission website.