President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating has slid to a record low, according to a new Realmeter poll, as a run of contentious moves on housing, the prosecution and the military drains support from nearly every corner of the country.
The survey, commissioned by Energy Economic News, put approval at 43.3 percent, down 2.6 percentage points in a week, while disapproval climbed to 53 percent, up 2.5 points. The gap between the two has widened into clear negative territory.
Three fights at once
Realmeter tied the decline to a cluster of controversies rather than any single stumble. It pointed to the government's real estate tax reform, a prosecution overhaul that would strip prosecutors of their direct power to investigate, and Lee's contentious remarks linking the Korea Military Academy to the risk of a coup. Together, the pollster said, they produced a broader erosion of support.
Each touches a different nerve. The tax changes worry homeowners, the prosecution reform reopens one of Korea's most divisive institutional battles, and the military comments drew fire from conservatives quick to defend the armed forces. Fighting on three fronts at once has left few groups untouched.
A slide that reaches everywhere
The regional numbers show how broad the drop was. In Seoul, approval fell 5.9 points to 36.8 percent, in the conservative stronghold of Daegu and North Gyeongsang it dropped 5.5 points to 29.8 percent, and in Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang it slid 4.8 points to 38.7 percent.