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Lee's approval rebounds to 59% on diplomacy in U.S. summit

Published: 29 Aug. 2025, 18:43

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Yongsan District, central Seoul, on Aug. 29. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

President Lee Jae Myung’s approval rating rose to 59 percent, attributed to the positive public reception of his six-day trip to the United States and Japan, according to a poll released Friday.

Gallup Korea conducted a survey of 1,000 people aged 18 and older nationwide from Tuesday to Thursday, finding that 59 percent of respondents said Lee was “doing well.” The figure is up three percentage points from the previous week. Negative evaluations fell by five percentage points to 30 percent, while 11 percent withheld judgment.

Lee’s approval rating had declined for two consecutive weeks before rebounding in this survey. Positive responses were particularly high among Democratic Party (DP) supporters and progressives, both in the 90 percent range, and among people in their 40s and 50s, both in the 70 percent range. Among moderates, 62 percent gave a favorable evaluation.

Although conservatives and People Power Party (PPP) supporters continued to give mostly negative assessments, disapproval dropped by about 10 percentage points, returning to levels seen two weeks earlier.

When asked why they viewed Lee positively, 21 percent cited diplomacy, the most common reason. Diplomacy was also the most frequent reason for negative evaluations, cited by 12 percent. On whether the Korea-U.S. summit benefited national interests, 58 percent answered yes, 24 percent no, and 18 percent reserved judgment.

U.S. President Donald Trump welcomes President Lee Jae Myung at the White House in Washington on Aug. 25. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

In terms of party support, the DP polled at 44 percent, unchanged from the previous week, while the PPP fell two percentage points to 23 percent. The Reform Party stood at 3 percent, the Rebuilding Korea Party at 2 percent and the Jinbo Party at 1 percent.

On the recently passed pro-labor “Yellow Envelope Bill,” 42 percent said they were in favor and 38 percent were opposed. Asked about the economic impact of the bill, 42 percent predicted negative effects, compared to 31 percent who expected positive effects.

In a favorability survey of leaders from four neighboring countries, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba ranked highest at 27 percent, followed by U.S. President Donald Trump at 24 percent, Chinese President Xi Jinping at 10 percent and Russian President Vladimir Putin at 4 percent.

In terms of unfavorable ratings, Putin ranked highest at 88 percent, followed by Xi at 76 percent, Trump at 67 percent, and Ishiba at 51 percent.

The poll was conducted through random dialing with live interviewers using mobile phone numbers. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level. Further details are available on the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission website.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY BAE JAE-SUNG [[email protected]]