» President Lee Myung-bak, right, speaks with ruling Grand National Party Chairperson Chung Mong-joon during a breakfast meeting in the Cheong Wa Dae, Nov. 2.

The Research Plus survey conducted on Oct. 31 at the request of the Hankyoreh shows President Lee Myung-bak’s popularity rating is 45.7 percent. President Lee’s approval rating appears to be remaining steady when compared to the 45.3 percent approval rating recorded in the Research Plus survey on Sept. 26.

President Lee Myung-bak’s approval rating was at a low 29.3 percent on July 25, however, has since risen to break 40 percent as of Aug. Experts say that President Lee’s decision to hold a state funeral for late President Kim Dae-jung and allow the North Korea mourning delegation to pay their respects positively impacted his approval ratings. In addition, analysts say President Lee’s approval rating has not been so far affected by controversial issues such as the proposal to change the Sejong City Development Plan.

Lim Sang-ryel, the president of Research Plus says, “President Lee’s approval ratings have been positively linked to the country’s economy.” Lim added, “The high approval rating might be a result of the expectation that he is leading the South Korean economy to recovery.”

Political party approval ratings have also not shown a big change. Although the Grand National Party (GNP) experienced its lowest approval ratings on May 30 at 18.7 percent that some attribute to President Roh Moo-hyun’s suicide, the party’s ratings have been on a steady climb. The GNP’s approval ratings have slowly increased from 23.9 percent (July 25) to 34.4 percent (Sept. 26), and to 34.7 percent (Oct. 31). In comparison, the Democratic Party’s (DP) approval ratings have not fluctuated greatly at 27.1 percent (May 30), 28.1 percent (July 25), 25.0 percent (Sept. 26) and 26.9 percent (Oct. 31).

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