President Lee's Approval Drops to Low 30% Range... Realmeter: "Down 3.6%p to 33.8%" [Polpol News]

Sharp Decline in Approval Among Young Voters and in Youngnam Region
Support Weakening Among Progressives
People Power Party at 42.1%, Democratic Party at 36.1%

A recent public opinion poll has shown that President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating for state affairs has declined for nine consecutive weeks, remaining in the low 30% range. Support for the Democratic Party has fallen, while backing for the People Power Party has increased, narrowing the gap between the two main parties to 6.0 percentage points, bringing it within the margin of error.

According to a poll released on September 14 by Realmeter (commissioned by Energy Economy News, conducted from the 7th to the 11th using ARS automated response via mobile phone, targeting 2,515 men and women aged 18 or older nationwide, with a margin of error of ±2.0 percentage points at a 95% confidence level and a response rate of 4.5%), President Lee's approval rating dropped by 3.6 percentage points from last week to record 33.8%. His disapproval rating rose by 3.8 percentage points to reach 63.3%.

By region, notable declines were observed in Busan, Ulsan, and South Gyeongsang Province, which dropped by 9.1 percentage points (from 36.4% to 27.3%); Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, which fell by 6.8 percentage points (from 29.4% to 22.6%); and Daejeon, Sejong, and the Chungcheong region, which decreased by 6.5 percentage points (from 35.7% to 29.2%). By age group, support among those in their 20s dropped by 10.2 percentage points (from 28.8% to 18.6%). Ideologically, support fell by 8.0 percentage points among progressives (from 57.3% to 49.3%) and by 5.5 percentage points among conservatives (from 19.2% to 13.7%).

President Lee Jae-myung is speaking at the senior secretaries' meeting held at the Blue House on the 11th. September 11, 2026 [Photo by Blue House Press Photographers Group] Yonhap News

Realmeter analyzed, "Despite recent summit-level diplomatic activities, support has been falling, likely due to a convergence of factors: the spread of negative public opinion regarding national issues such as the controversy over cabinet reshuffles, the consideration of deploying troops to the Hormuz Strait, and uncertainties surrounding real estate policies, as well as a significant departure of progressives and young people in their 20s."

In the party support survey (commissioned by Energy Economy News, conducted from the 10th to 11th among 1,003 men and women aged 18 or older nationwide using ARS automated response via mobile phone, with a margin of error of ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level and a response rate of 3.6%), support for the People Power Party rose by 4.5 percentage points to reach 42.1%, taking the lead. The Democratic Party, which had the highest support last week, saw its support fall by 5.7 percentage points to 36.1%, dropping to second place. The National Innovation Party and Progressive Party each recorded 4.7% and 1.3%, while the Reform Party also recorded 1.3%.

For more details on the poll, refer to the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission website.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.