Moon's job approval rating reaches new low

SEOUL, Dec. 24 (Yonhap) -- President Moon Jae-in's job approval rating dropped to a new low last week, a poll showed Monday, amid a controversy over the alleged inspection of civilians by his office Cheong Wa Dae.

In the poll conducted by Realmeter, 47.1 percent of those surveyed said they approved of Moon's job as president, down 1.4 percentage points from a week earlier.

The reading marks the lowest since Moon took office in May 2017. The weekly survey was conducted Monday through Friday, involving 2,513 adults throughout the nation.

The president's office has been on the defensive since one of its former inspectors claimed to have inspected civilians for Cheong Wa Dae, which the president has repeatedly vowed never to do.

Cheong Wa Dae strongly denies the accusation, saying the former inspector himself may have done so at his own decision and out of the boundaries set by the presidential office.

The presidential office has filed a complaint with the prosecution against its former inspector.

The ruling Democratic Party's approval rating gained 1 percentage point to 38 percent, while that of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party advanced 1.3 points to 25.4 percent.

The approval ratings of the splinter Bareunmirae Party and the Party for Democracy and Peace came to 5.6 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively.

The approval rating of the progressive Justice Party came to 8.1 percent, down 0.6 percentage point.

bdk@yna.co.kr
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