Kim Jong-in's "Moment of the Star"? Yoon Seok-yeol Leads Presidential Election Polls

Leading by 32.4% Beyond Margin of Error
Twice as High as Same Survey 6 Weeks Ago
Public Activities Contrary to Stealth Predictions
Targeting Ruling Party's Weak Spot by Mentioning LH

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol is expressing his intention to resign from the position of Prosecutor General as he arrives at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the 4th./Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporters Oh Ju-yeon, Lee Hyun-joo] Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol (photo) ranked first in a presidential candidate suitability poll. This appears to reflect a shift in public sentiment following the concretization of his political entry possibility, which had existed only as a 'speculation,' through his 'resignation as Prosecutor General.' Contrary to predictions that Yoon would remain 'low-profile' for a while after his resignation, he has surprisingly made candid remarks, showing an attitude of accelerating his political activities.

According to the results of a next presidential candidate suitability survey conducted on the 5th by the Korea Society Opinion Institute (KSOI) commissioned by TBS on the 8th, former Prosecutor General Yoon received the highest support at 32.4%. He was followed by Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung (24.1%) and Representative Lee Nak-yeon (14.9%). Yoon announced his intention to resign on the 4th, the day before this survey. His approval rating was 14.6% in a survey conducted by the same organization six weeks earlier (January 22). This survey targeted 1,023 people nationwide aged 18 and over, with a sampling error of ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.

Meanwhile, public opinion on his political entry was evenly split without leaning toward either support or opposition. According to a survey conducted by Realmeter commissioned by YTN on the 5th, among 500 people nationwide aged 18 and over, 48.0% responded that Yoon’s political entry was 'appropriate,' while 46.3% said it was 'inappropriate.' Both responses fall within the margin of error (±4.4 percentage points at a 95% confidence level).

Amid the public debate, Yoon has been preparing to take a front-line political stance, presenting opinions on current issues in an interview with some media outlets just three days after his resignation on the 7th. In the interview, he mentioned the land speculation scandal involving LH employees. He stated, "We must not gloss over this issue with election concerns," even linking the matter to the April 7 by-elections. Reports also emerged that Yoon met with former Democratic Party leader Kim Han-gil, a senior politician with an anti-Moon (anti-Moon Jae-in) stance, shortly before announcing his resignation. Regarding this, there is speculation that Yoon sought advice on his political entry method, whether to join the main opposition party or to rally a third-party base.

For detailed information related to elections, please refer to the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission website and others.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.