South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s approval rating fell to its lowest level since he took office, extending its decline for a sixth consecutive week, according to a Realmeter poll released Monday.
The survey, conducted from Aug. 18-21 among 2,026 adults, showed Lee’s approval rating falling 2.8 percentage points from the previous week to 40.2%.
His disapproval rating rose by the same margin to 56.9%, the Korea Herald reported.
Realmeter attributed the decline to growing public distrust over the government’s housing policies, political clashes involving judicial and constitutional issues, and security concerns following the scaling back of South Korea-US joint military exercises.
The pollster also noted weakening support for Lee among conservative voters and people aged 70 and above.
A separate Realmeter survey of 1,009 adults conducted Aug. 20-21 showed support for the ruling Democratic Party of Korea falling 6 percentage points to 41.9%.
Support for the opposition People Power Party, meanwhile, climbed 4.5 points to 37.6%, narrowing the gap between the two parties.
Both surveys were conducted using wireless automated response systems. The presidential approval poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.