President Lee's Approval Rating Stalls at 37% for Third Week; Real Estate Policy Disapproval Reaches Record 61%

President Lee Jae-myung's job approval rating remained stalled at 37% for the third consecutive week. The disapproval rating dropped 5 percentage points from the previous survey to 51%, but among seven policy areas evaluated, real estate policy showed the highest disapproval at 61%.

According to a survey released by Gallup Korea on the 9th covering the second week of October, the president's job approval rating stood at 37%, with disapproval at 51% and neutral responses at 12%. By region, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province posted 36% approval, falling below the national average. Gwangju and Jeolla were the only region exceeding 50% at 65%, while Daegu and North Gyeongsan registered 26%, Seoul 31%, and Busan, Ulsan, and South Gyeongsan 39%. By age group, only those in their 50s exceeded 50% at 55%, while those aged 18-29 recorded the lowest at 24%.

For reasons behind positive assessments, diplomacy ranked highest at 24%, followed by economy and livelihood at 14%. The top reason for disapproval was real estate policy at 18%, followed by defense, security, and North Korea relations at 15%, and reduction of prosecutor authority and abolition of the Prosecutor General's Office at 8%. Gallup Korea noted that real estate issues have maintained the top position among reasons for disapproval since late July.

In policy area evaluations, disapproval dominated five of the seven areas, with the exceptions being welfare (48% approval, 32% disapproval) and diplomacy (43% approval, 38% disapproval). Real estate policy showed 19% approval and 61% disapproval, a 15 percentage point surge in disapproval compared to the previous survey in July. Public personnel appointments (20% approval, 57% disapproval) and North Korea policy (24% approval, 55% disapproval) also saw significant increases in disapproval. Economic policy registered 35% approval and 47% disapproval, marking the first reversal of approval and disapproval since the current administration took office.

Party support showed the Democratic Party at 35% and People Power Party at 26%, a 9 percentage point gap. The Democratic Party dropped 5 percentage points from the previous survey, recording the lowest figure since the current administration's launch based on Gallup Korea's surveys. The Innovation Party recorded 3%, the Reform Party 2%, and the Progressive Party 1%, while the unaffiliated stood at 31%.

The survey was conducted from October 6-8 targeting 1,000 adults aged 18 and above nationwide through wireless virtual-number telephone interview methodology. The margin of error was ±3.1 percentage points at the 95% confidence level, with a response rate of 9.7%. For detailed information, refer to the Gallup Korea website or the National Election Polls Deliberation Committee website.