Why did President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating rise in the latest Realmeter poll?

Realmeter said his communication at a Sept. 18 press conference helped, along with his overseas diplomacy at the U.N. General Assembly and the Korea-U.S. summit. The pollster also cited the withdrawal of Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won and the resignation offer of presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik as signs of personnel reform.

How close are the People Power Party and Democratic Party of Korea in the latest party poll?

The People Power Party led with 39.4 percent, narrowly ahead of the Democratic Party of Korea at 38.7 percent. Realmeter said the PPP appeared to gain support by exposing the government's poor personnel vetting system after two minister nominees withdrew.

What were the polling details behind Lee Jae Myung's approval rating and the party results?

The presidential survey covered 1,508 adults nationwide from Monday to Wednesday last week, while the party survey covered 1,005 adults last Tuesday and Wednesday. The poll on Lee had a 2.5-point margin of error, and the party poll had a 3.1-point margin of error, both at a 95 percent confidence level.

Lee's approval rating rises for 2nd straight week to 37.9%: poll

Listen

Summary

President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating rose for the second straight week to 37.9 percent in a Realmeter poll conducted last Monday through Wednesday. Negative assessments fell to 60.1 percent, and support for the main opposition People Power Party topped the ruling Democratic Party of Korea in a separate poll. Realmeter said the gains were helped by Lee's press conference on Sept. 18 and his overseas diplomacy at the U.N. General Assembly and the Korea-U.S. summit.

Key Facts

The poll of 1,508 adults nationwide found Lee's positive job performance rating up 3.1 percentage points from the previous week.
Negative assessments of Lee fell 3.3 percentage points to 60.1 percent.
In a separate poll of 1,005 adults, the People Power Party got 39.4 percent support and the Democratic Party of Korea 38.7 percent.
The presidential poll had a margin of error of 2.5 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level, while the party poll had a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points at the same confidence level.
The surveys were commissioned by EKN newspaper.

By Yonhap

Published Sep 28, 2026 10:04 am KST

President Lee Jae Myung speaks at a South Korea-Mexico business forum in Mexico City, Friday (local time). Yonhap

President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating rose for the second consecutive week last week to 37.9 percent, a pollster said Monday.

In a poll conducted on 1,508 adults nationwide from last Monday to Wednesday, positive assessments of Lee's job performance rose by 3.1 percentage points from the previous week, while negative assessments fell 3.3 percentage points to 60.1 percent, Realmeter said.

Lee's approval rating fell for 10 weeks before turning upward in the previous poll, helped by his clarification of key political issues during a press conference Sept. 18.

"His communication through the press conference and his overseas diplomacy at the U.N. General Assembly and the Korea-U.S. summit worked in his favor," the pollster said, noting the withdrawal of Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won and resignation offer of presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik were also seen as a demonstration of his commitment to personnel reform.

In a separate poll conducted on 1,005 adults last Tuesday and Wednesday, support for the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) surpassed that for the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) for the first time in two weeks, with the PPP garnering 39.4 percent and the DPK 38.7 percent.

Realmeter said the PPP appeared to have rallied support by helping expose the government's poor personnel vetting system amid the withdrawals of two minister nominees.

The survey on the president had a margin of error of 2.5 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level, while the one on political parties had a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.

Both were commissioned by EKN newspaper.

Explore More