Lee's approval rating sinks to new low: poll

President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating has plummeted to an all-time low of 40.2 percent, marking the sixth week of decline according to a new poll. Conducted among 2,026 voters from August 22-25 by Realmeter, the survey revealed a significant 2.8 percentage point drop from the previous week. A majority of respondents, 56.9 percent, gave Lee an unfavorable assessment of his job performance, up from 54.1 percent in the prior poll.

The decline in public approval is attributed to mounting distrust of the government's housing policies, particularly in light of a recent proposal to build apartments in Yongsan Park. This proposal sparked controversy after Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae recommended two new Supreme Court justices to Lee in writing, a move that typically requires prior in-person coordination.

The poll also cited security concerns over scaled-back military drills between South Korea and the United States, which led to a drop in approval ratings among conservative voters and those aged 70 and older.

Separately, a poll by the same firm indicated a 6 percentage point decline in support for the ruling Democratic Party, now at 41.9 percent, while opposition party support rose by 4.5 percentage points to 37.6 percent. The latter poll surveyed 1,009 individuals aged 18 and older on August 23-24, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.