Yoon's Temporary Halt of Doorstepping... Ruling Party Lawmakers Secretly Relieved

Respecting the Meaning of Communication with the People but Feeling Burdened
Supporters Rejoice as Approval Ratings Reflect Achievements

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] It has been a month since President Yoon Seok-yeol stopped the daily doorstepping he used to do every morning on his way to work. How do the ruling party lawmakers react? While they feel regret over the suspension itself, they mostly breathe a sigh of relief. Although they respected President Yoon's intention to communicate with the public daily, they had more than a few moments of anxiety due to a series of incidents caused by his unrefined remarks.

One first-term lawmaker said on the 17th, "There were negative views about doorstepping even among the support base," adding, "There are supporters in my constituency who think it is fortunate that doorstepping has now stopped."

Another second-term lawmaker said, "I thought those verbal mistakes happened because he was not very familiar with politics," and added, "I heard that even in the U.S., the president is not exposed this frequently." He also said, "Since the approval rating seems to be rising, it seems to have turned out well in the end."

In fact, President Yoon's approval rating has been on the rise since the suspension of doorstepping. In particular, the increase in approval among those aged 60 and above, traditionally considered the core support base of the People Power Party, has driven the upward trend.

According to a Gallup poll conducted nationwide from the 13th to the 15th among 1,001 adults aged 18 and over (via telephone interviewer survey), President Yoon's approval rating rose by 3 percentage points from the previous week's survey to 36%. In the third week of November, his approval rating was 29%, then 30% in the fourth week of November, 31% in the first week of December, and 33% in the second week, showing a steady upward trend.

In particular, the response that President Yoon is "doing well" was high among People Power Party supporters (78%) and those aged 70 and above (61%). Compared to last week's survey, approval among respondents in their 60s rose from 51% to 56%, and among conservative-leaning supporters from 60% to 66%, increasing by 5 and 6 percentage points respectively. For more details, please refer to the website of the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission.

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