53.5% of Citizens Support Impeachment of Minister of the Interior and Safety Sang-min Lee

Media Tomato Opinion Poll

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] A majority of the public believes that Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min should be impeached in connection with the Itaewon tragedy.

According to a public opinion poll released by Media Tomato on the 20th (conducted by wireless ARS method on 1,034 adults aged 18 and over nationwide from the 16th to the 18th at the request of News Tomato), 53.5% of respondents supported the impeachment of Minister Lee. Those opposed accounted for 38.1%, and 8.4% were unsure.

The three opposition parties (the Democratic Party of Korea, the Justice Party, and the Basic Income Party) previously submitted a motion for dismissal against Minister Lee, which went through the plenary session approval process, but President Yoon Seok-yeol did not accept it. The National Assembly’s Special Committee for the Investigation of the Itaewon Tragedy also adopted a report on the 17th stating that Minister Lee was responsible for the handling of the accident. The special committee also filed charges against Minister Lee for perjury and other matters.

However, the opposition parties are currently waiting for President Yoon’s decision regarding Minister Lee’s position. If President Yoon ultimately does not hold Minister Lee accountable, the opposition plans to take action.

At the 2023 Central-Local Joint Meeting held at the Government Seoul Office Building, Lee Sang-min, Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, is delivering a greeting. Photo by Heo Young-han younghan@

The poll also showed a high level of public opinion that the police investigation into the final results of the Itaewon tragedy was insufficient. Those who felt the investigation was insufficient accounted for 56.7%, those who felt it was sufficient 32.9%, and 10.4% were unsure.

Meanwhile, in the suitability survey for the next leader of the People Power Party, former lawmaker Yoo Seung-min ranked first with 30.7%, former lawmaker Na Kyung-won second with 20.7%, and lawmaker Kim Ki-hyun third with 19.1%. Yoo ranked first among progressives (43.8%) and centrists (33.1%), but did not gain support from conservatives (15.5%).

In fact, when focusing only on the People Power Party’s support base, which is important in the party convention, lawmaker Kim ranked first with 39.8%, former lawmaker Na second with 25.1%, lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo third with 16.6%, and former lawmaker Yoo came in fourth with 7.9%. The People Power Party abolished the 7:3 rule (70% party member vote and 30% public opinion poll) that had continued for 18 years since 2004, and decided to elect the party leader entirely by party members in this convention.

For detailed survey methodology and results, please refer to the website of the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission.

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