Yoon Seok-yeol Seems to Have Avoided Critical Damage Despite Jang's Mother Controversy... Still Leading in Polls

Yoon Seok-yeol's Approval Ratings Fluctuated Across Polls but Maintained 1st Place
Ongoing Ruling Party and Opposition Disputes Surrounding Jang Mo's Trial Continue

[Asia Economy Reporters Naju-seok and Geum Bo-ryeong] Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol maintained his first-place position in the next presidential candidate opinion poll despite adverse events such as the arrest of his mother-in-law. Although the convention effect following his political participation declaration appears somewhat offset, it seems he avoided a fatal blow.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In the opinion poll conducted by the Korea Society Opinion Institute (KSOI, commissioned by TBS Broadcasting) released on the 5th, Yoon received 31.4% support, maintaining a first-place lead within the margin of error over Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung, who had 30.3%. This survey was conducted from the 2nd to 3rd of this month, targeting 1,002 adults aged 18 and over nationwide (sampling error ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level). Compared to the previous survey by the same organization (conducted on the 25th-26th of last month), the ranking remained the same but the gap narrowed somewhat. Yoon’s support rate dropped by 1 percentage point, while Lee’s rose by 1.9 percentage points.

The news on the 2nd that Yoon’s mother-in-law was legally detained on charges of violating the Medical Service Act is interpreted as having influenced the results. KSOI stated, "Since Yoon resigned as Prosecutor General, this is the smallest margin by which Yoon has led Lee in opinion polls."

However, the trend in Yoon’s support rate after his mother-in-law’s arrest points in different directions depending on the survey, making it difficult to judge a consistent trend. According to a survey conducted by PNR Research commissioned by Money Today and the Future Korea Research Institute, Yoon’s support rate was 37.2%, up from 32.7% in the same organization’s survey last week. This survey was conducted on the 3rd, with a sampling error of ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level. For each opinion poll result, please refer to the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission website.

Meanwhile, political attacks and defenses regarding the arrest of Yoon’s mother-in-law continued on the 5th. Park Joo-min, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, appeared on a radio show that day and said, "After reading the verdict regarding (Yoon’s mother-in-law), there were many detailed circumstances that could not be overlooked without raising issues." In particular, Park focused on whether Yoon exerted influence over the initiation and conclusion of the investigation, stating, "We plan to gradually verify the relationship between the prosecutor in charge and Yoon." On the other hand, Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, said on the same radio show, "This (the first trial result of the mother-in-law) does not constitute a disqualification. If the public judges there is no problem, the approval rating will rise, and then it will not be an issue for elected public office or party membership eligibility."

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