What caused President Lee Jae Myung’s approval rating to rebound to 37.3 percent?

Realmeter cited government policies aimed at improving livelihoods through housing and jobs, along with measures to tackle violent crimes after a stabbing spree in Incheon. The pollster also said a sharp stock market decline later in the week appeared to weigh on the rating.

How did support for South Korea’s Democratic Party and People Power Party change in the latest poll?

In a separate survey, support for the Democratic Party of Korea increased 0.7 percentage point to 36.2 percent, while support for the People Power Party decreased 0.4 percentage point to 40.9 percent.

How large was the Realmeter survey of President Lee’s job performance, and what was its margin of error?

The survey covered 2,520 adults nationwide and was conducted from the previous Monday through Friday. Its margin of error was 2 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.

President Lee's approval rating rebounds after 2-week decline: poll

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Summary

President Lee Jae Myung’s approval rating rebounded to 37.3 percent nationwide Monday after two consecutive weeks of decline. Realmeter attributed the increase to policies addressing housing and jobs and government measures responding to violent crimes after a stabbing spree in Incheon. Negative assessments fell to 60.4 percent, while a later stock market decline appeared to weigh on his rating.

Key Facts

The Realmeter poll surveyed 2,520 adults nationwide from the previous Monday through Friday, with a margin of error of 2 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.
Positive assessments of Lee’s job performance rose 2.1 percentage points from the previous week, while negative assessments fell 1 percentage point.
In a separate survey of 1,005 adults, support for the Democratic Party of Korea rose 0.7 percentage point to 36.2 percent.
Support for the People Power Party fell 0.4 percentage point to 40.9 percent, and that survey had a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.

By Yonhap

Published Oct 19, 2026 9:02 am KST

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap

President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating rebounded to 37.3 percent after two consecutive weeks of decline, a survey showed Monday.

In the poll conducted on 2,520 adults nationwide from last Monday to Friday by Realmeter, positive assessments of Lee's job performance rose 2.1 percentage points from the previous week.

Negative assessments fell 1 percentage point to 60.4 percent.

As reasons for the rebound, Realmeter cited policies aimed at improving people's livelihoods in areas such as housing and jobs, as well as the government's measures to tackle violent crimes following a stabbing spree in Incheon, west of Seoul.

The pollster added that a sharp stock market decline later in the week appeared to have weighed on Lee's approval rating.

In a separate survey of 1,005 adults conducted between Thursday and Friday, support for the ruling Democratic Party of Korea rose 0.7 percentage point to 36.2 percent, while that of the main opposition People Power Party fell 0.4 percentage point to 40.9 percent.

The survey on the president had a margin of error of 2 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 polls were commissioned by the Asia Business Daily.

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