President Lee's disapproval rating surpasses approval for first time

SEOUL, June 22 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung's disapproval rating has surpassed his approval rating for the first time since he took office in June last year, a survey showed Monday, amid the fallout of ballot shortages reported during the recent local elections.

In the poll commissioned by the EKN newspaper and conducted by Realmeter, Lee's approval rating dropped 4.8 percentage points from a week earlier to 46.7 percent, marking the first time his approval rating fell below 50 percent in a Realmeter poll since his inauguration.

The negative assessment climbed 5.5 percentage points to 49.7 percent.

Realmeter attributed the decline to the recent controversy surrounding poor management of ballot shortages in the June 3 local elections and a deepening internal strife in the ruling Democratic Party (DP).

"Despite positive factors, including the outcome of the president's trip to Europe and the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index topping the historic 9,000-point level, concerns over widening inequality in the asset market intensified, leading to the decline in support among moderates and those in the greater Seoul area," it added.

The weekly survey, conducted on 2,517 people aged 18 and older from Monday to Friday last week, had a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.

The presidential office said it would work harder to listen to the voices of the people in response to Lee's declining approval ratings.

"We take this seriously and with humility, and we will pay closer attention to the concerns and expectations of the public," a Cheong Wa Dae official said.

"We believe the recent change in the president's approval rating reflects the public's view of economic and livelihood conditions, as well as their overall assessment of the administration's handling of state affairs," he added.

In a separate survey conducted by the same pollster, support for the DP rose 2.1 percentage points from a week earlier to 40.1 percent, while support for the main opposition People Power Party fell 2 percentage points to 42.3 percent.

The poll, conducted on 1,001 individuals aged 18 and over Thursday and Friday, had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, with a confidence level of 95 percent.