Yoon's approval rating at 38.4 percent, survey shows

President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during an economic policy meeting held in central Seoul on Tuesday. [YONHAP]

President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating has risen to 38.4 percent, a survey Yonhap News Agency conducted jointly with Yonhap News TV showed Wednesday.

The ruling People Power Party (PPP) and the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) would win 29.5 percent and 30.6 percent of the vote, respectively, if the parliamentary elections set for next year were to take place tomorrow, the poll also showed.

Yonhap News Agency and Yonhap News TV jointly commissioned the survey to gauge public sentiment. The survey was conducted by Metrix on 1,000 adults aged 18 and older Saturday and Sunday.

According to the poll, the positive assessment of Yoon's performance was 38.4 percent, a 2.1 percentage-point rise from the previous survey conducted a month ago, while the negative assessment came to 53 percent.

Consistent with previous surveys, defense and diplomacy were the most frequently cited factors in both positive and negative assessments of Yoon's performance.

Notably, education and culture showed the most significant increases in both assessments.

The poll also indicated the PPP and the DP would run neck and neck in next year's elections at 29.5 percent and 30.6 percent, respectively.

Those who said they would vote for the PPP fell 1.7 percentage points from the previous survey, while those who would vote for the DP also dropped 2.5 percentage points.

But in terms of the current approval ratings, the PPP was ahead with 34.1 percent against the DP's 30.9 percent. The DP experienced a 4.1 percentage-point fall in public support compared with the previous survey, while the PPP maintained its level of support.

The poll showed 3.3 percent of the respondents would pick candidates from the minor opposition Justice Party, while 24.1 percent had no preference for candidates, marking a 6.8 percentage-point increase from the previous survey.

In detail, 69.5 percent of the respondents giving a positive assessment of Yoon's performance said they would vote for PPP candidates. In contrast, 52.1 percent of the respondents giving a negative assessment of Yoon's performance said they would pick DP candidates for parliamentary seats.

Regarding the government's decision to exclude extremely difficult "killer" questions from the annual college entrance exam, opinions were divided, with 45.4 percent in support and 43.7 percent in opposition.

The state-administered College Scholastic Ability Test, known as suneung in Korean, has faced criticism for including killer questions, which many say students without tutoring from private cram schools, known as "hagwons" in Korean, are unable to solve.

The results had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.

Yonhap