[The Editors' Verdict] Why Has President Yoon's Approval Rating Dropped? Four Reasons

President Yoon Suk-yeol is presiding over a Cabinet meeting held on the morning of the 5th at the Yongsan Presidential Office building in Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

There has never been anything like this in previous administrations. This is about the president's approval rating. It dropped to the 30% range just two months after taking office. In a national survey on government performance conducted by Realmeter from the 4th to the 8th (targeting 2,525 people aged 18 and over nationwide, with a margin of error of ±2.0% at a 95% confidence level), the positive evaluation that "President Yoon Seok-yeol is doing well in his duties" was only 37.0%. The negative evaluation that "he is doing poorly" was 57.0%. Following the survey released on the 8th by Korea Gallup (targeting 1,000 people aged 18 and over nationwide, with a margin of error of ±3.1% at a 95% confidence level), which showed President Yoon's job approval rating at 37%, subsequent surveys have continued to show approval ratings in the 30% range.

Since this is unprecedented, various analyses are emerging in the political sphere. Some say, "Isn't it just a matter of time before it goes up? It might be better to take the whipping early in the administration." These views mainly come from ruling party figures. Conversely, the opposition analyzes, "It must have been really bad for the approval rating to drop so early in the administration. It won't be easy to rebound." While both sides agree that the situation is serious, their judgments differ. The ruling party sees it as no big deal, whereas the opposition appears to be preparing for a stronger offensive.

Why has President Yoon's approval rating fallen? Usually, approval ratings soar early in an administration. Korea Gallup's historical data on presidents' first-year first-quarter job approval ratings (Kim Young-sam 71%, Kim Dae-jung 71%, Roh Moo-hyun 60%, Lee Myung-bak 52%, Park Geun-hye 42%, Moon Jae-in 81%) is symbolic. This time, it is different. However, it is hard to say that President Yoon or his government made such enormous mistakes to cause a plummet in approval ratings. So why?

One of the recent words symbolizing our economy is "complex crisis." It refers to a situation where not just one factor, but inflation, interest rates, exchange rates, and oil prices all soar simultaneously. The reality is that it is not easy to resolve. President Yoon is no exception. Politically, he is also facing a complex crisis. Instead of synergy among four elements?environment, personnel, messaging, and political functions?they are causing a simultaneous decline in approval ratings, like clothes getting wet in a drizzle.

First, the environment is unfavorable. The domestic and international economic situations are serious. While exchange rates and oil prices are soaring, the rapid rise in prices for ordinary citizens has become a reality. Interest burdens have also increased. Complaints from self-employed small business owners and those heavily leveraged are slowly rising. The parliamentary landscape is unfavorable, so it is not a situation where various policies can be vigorously pushed forward. Also, since President Yoon has not been in politics for long, he lacks a "personal faction," and conflicts with Representative Lee Jun-seok have further narrowed his governing base. Moreover, there is the "Kim Geon-hee risk" related to his spouse.

In this situation, personnel failures are the most apparent cause of the approval rating decline. Four minister-level officials have already been dismissed. There are also four high-ranking officials appointed without hearings, including Kim Chang-ki, Commissioner of the National Tax Service; Park Soon-ae, Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs and Minister of Education; Kim Seung-gyeom, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and Kim Ju-hyun, Chairman of the Financial Services Commission. The sense of inspiration and cooperation has disappeared, expectations have lowered, and the support base is eroding.

The president's messages, exposed without refinement, have accelerated the decline in approval ratings. Representative examples include remarks like "Have you ever seen such an excellent minister appointed by the previous administration?" and "Approval ratings don't matter. I don't care." These give an impression of being frivolous and not well-versed in policies. They raise doubts about whether systematic support is being provided. The lack of a visible control tower or political function to coordinate various aspects and set direction is also one of the reasons for the approval rating decline.

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