COVER STORY President pressed to change course as approval rating hits record low

President Lee Jae Myung is grappling with a falling approval rating and no clear sign of a turnaround, as a string of disputed government-led initiatives continues to unsettle the public. This has prompted Cheong Wa Dae to pledge a renewed focus on livelihoods and tangible economic results.

Disputes over policies have piled up rather than letting up, including controversies in the past weeks over a real estate tax overhaul, prosecution reform and a proposed merger of military academies.

More recently, the controversies have spread to plans to build rental housing instead of parkland on a vast site in central Seoul’s Yongsan District, as well as the scaling back of South Korea-U.S. joint military exercises and Cheong Wa Dae’s clash with the Supreme Court over the nomination of new justices.

Analysts said Tuesday that the president has limited options for making a breakthrough amid the disputed initiatives, as the public increasingly perceives them as threats to their economic interests and their access to justice and national security, rather than as ideological issues.

The analysts suggested the president should focus on correcting the policies in the face of public backlash and producing tangible results to improve the economy and people’s livelihoods.

“People are increasingly putting their personal interests ahead of their political beliefs,” said Shin Yul, a political science professor at Myongji University.

The professor pointed to the latest Realmeter survey, commissioned by Energy Economic News and released Monday.

It showed Lee’s approval rating falling for the sixth consecutive week to a record low of 40.2 percent, down 2.8 percentage points from the previous week, while negative assessments rose to 56.9 percent and exceeded his approval rating outside the margin of error for the fourth consecutive week.

In particular, support weakened among people under 60, including people in their 40s, a traditionally liberal group and a key pillar of Lee’s political base, suggesting that concerns over personal interests are overriding ideological loyalty.

Realmeter attributed the decline to the controversy over the plan to build rental homes on the Yongsan Park site, noting that it fueled distrust of the government’s housing policy.

The pollster also pointed to Cheong Wa Dae’s row with Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae over the nomination of new justices, along with security concerns over the scaled-back Seoul-Washington joint military exercises.

“The assessment suggests that perceived threats to their own interests, rather than ideological orientation, are playing an important role,” Shin said.

Park Sung-min, head of MIN Consulting, said the government’s “forceful handling of sensitive issues had a severely negative impact."

He added, “It is understandable that those who opposed his policies are turning away, but the real concern is that people who voted for him in the presidential election are also withdrawing their support.”

Jung Jae-hwan, a political science professor at Inha University, suggested the government take public opinion into account and adjust the disputed policies if necessary.

He also said working closely with the ruling party’s new leadership may help restore party unity amid lingering factional feuds and regain momentum for Lee’s policy agenda.

Shin voiced a similar view, saying restoring party unity could be "the starting point for correcting what has gone wrong."

With regard to the record-low approval rating, Cheong Wa Dae said it would work to ensure the public could feel tangible improvements in their livelihoods and the economy.

“We will put people’s lives at the top of the national agenda and closely review the government’s overall management of state affairs,” presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said during a press briefing Monday. “We will demonstrate our utmost commitment to delivering tangible results.”

The Realmeter survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.2 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level and a response rate of 3.2 percent. For more details, visit the website of the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission.