Anchor: A year on from the election that elevated Yoon Suk Yeol to the presidency, KBS commissioned a poll to gauge the public’s perception of his performance. Respondents were also asked about their views on the National Assembly’s recent vote to shield Yoon’s election opponent and main opposition Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung from arrest on corruption charges.
Tom McCarthy brings us the results.

Report: A KBS poll has found that more than 55 percent of respondents disapprove of President Yoon Suk Yeol’s management of state affairs a year after he won by the narrowest margin in the history of South Korea’s presidential elections.

While 55-point-nine percent of respondents believe Yoon is doing a “poor job,” 40-point-four percent disagreed, lifting his approval rating above 40 percent for the first time in a KBS poll.

Of those that disapproved of the president’s performance, 26-point-nine percent cited a lack of measures on the economy and people’s livelihoods, while 23-point-six percent pointed to biased personnel appointments.

There is a slight glimmer of hope for the president, with the number of respondents believing that he will do well going forward outpacing those who currently approve at 44-point-two percent, but 52-point-six percent think he will continue to perform poorly.

The results weren't much better for Yoon’s onetime opponent and current leader of the main opposition Democratic Party(DP), Lee Jae-myung, who narrowly evaded arrest in a parliamentary vote last Monday.

As part of a probe into a land development scandal that has ensnared the DP chief over allegations stemming from his term as mayor of the Gyeonggi Province city of Seongnam, the prosecution's request for an arrest warrant required parliamentary approval to override the immunity granted to sitting lawmakers.

Although Lee prevailed in the vote, albeit only narrowly with a margin characterized by his loyalists as “shocking,” the public seems to think it was the wrong move, with 52-point-one percent of those asked believing that parliament made the “wrong decision,” while 39-point-three percent did not.

Asked about the prosecution’s investigation into the DP chief, 53-point-nine percent said that it is proper that the corruption and bribery claims be looked into, while 40-point-seven percent believe the probe is political retribution.

More than half of respondents think Lee should step down at 53-point-eight percent versus the 40-point-seven percent that don’t think there is a reason to resign.

Conducted by Hankook Research, the poll has a 95-percent confidence level with a margin of error of plus or minus three-point-one percentage points.
Tom McCarthy, KBS World Radio News.