'Losing Approval Ratings and Yoon Core Supporters Leaving' Yoon Faces a Heavy Vacation... Even Calls for Presidential Office Reform

[Image source=Yonhap News]

President Yoon Suk-yeol took his first vacation since his inauguration on the 1st amid a series of setbacks including Kyung-ran, personnel controversies, and the text message scandal. The situation became more complicated for President Yoon’s future political plans as his approval rating for national governance fell below 30% in the public opinion poll released that day, following last week’s survey. Some speculate that a reorganization of the presidential office might take place around the 100-day mark of the new administration.

A presidential office official stated during a briefing that morning, "(President Yoon) was considering a 2-3 day local vacation but ultimately decided not to go," adding, "He is expected to stay in Seoul, focus on political planning, and take walks to rest."

Initially, there was consideration of visiting local sites to communicate with citizens in addition to resting, but the final decision was to remain in Seoul and concentrate on political planning. The official explained, "Considering that the president’s movement during peak vacation season could inconvenience those enjoying holidays in those areas, among other factors, this decision was made." However, with various setbacks hitting the presidential office and ruling party and approval ratings dropping, it seems President Yoon judged that he could not leisurely leave for a local vacation.

The public opinion poll conducted by the Korea Society Opinion Institute (KSOI) on behalf of TBS and released that day (surveying 1,003 men and women nationwide aged 18 and over from the 29th to 30th) showed a positive evaluation of President Yoon’s governance at 28.9% and a negative evaluation at 68.5% (with a sampling error of ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level; for details, refer to the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission website), breaking the 30% approval threshold. This is the second time following the poll on President Yoon’s governance released by Gallup Korea on the 29th of last month.

During the 82 days since his inauguration, President Yoon successfully navigated major international events such as the Korea-US summit and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit, but has been hampered by internal issues including personnel problems, the suspension of People Power Party leader Lee Jun-seok’s party membership, the establishment of the police bureau and police opposition, and the text message scandal involving President Yoon and Kwon Seong-dong, the acting party leader and floor leader.

These issues have also led to growing calls not only from the ruling party but also from within the presidential office for reform. After his vacation, President Yoon is expected to concretize plans to boost momentum for national governance around the August 15 Liberation Day and the 100-day anniversary of his inauguration. Observers anticipate not only a major amnesty aimed at economic growth and national unity but also a shake-up within the presidential office. Regarding personnel changes in the presidential office staff, the office stated they are "listening carefully" but refrained from direct comments.

Meanwhile, just before his vacation, President Yoon instructed his aides to seek solutions to the dual wage system between primary and subcontracted unions revealed during the Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering union strike, to establish a special COVID-19 response team within the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, and to prepare for price stability during the Chuseok holiday.

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