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Kim Chong-in, leader of the United Future Party’s emergency response committee, presides over a meeting of the committee at the National Assembly on July 20. (Yonhap News)

The raft of presidential hopefuls aligned with South Korea’s opposition party, led by Prosecutor-General Yoon Seok-youl, are all enjoying a surge of support in the polls.

A Real Meter poll about support for candidates in the next presidential election, in 2020, found that Yoon’s approval had risen 4.2 points from the previous month to 14.3%. Commissioned by YTN and released on July 20, the poll covered 1,000 adults around the country, with a reliability of 95% and a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

Yoon ranked third, after Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Nak-yeon (23.3%) and Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung (18.7%). Yoon’s 14.3% polling results were within the margin of error with Lee Jae-myung’s.

“The support for Yoon isn’t really about Yoon himself. It can be seen as one of an increasing number of indicators that reveal stark opposition to the Moon administration, which could be deadly for the ruling party,” said Park Seong-min, CEO of a political consulting group called Min.

Other opposition party figures in the top 10 also saw their support rise, though by a smaller amount. Hong Joon-pyo was fourth in the poll at 5.9% (up 0.6 points); former Liberty Korea Party leader Hwang Kyo-ahn was fifth at 5.1% (up 0.3 points), People’s Party leader Ahn Cheol-soo was sixth at 4.8% (up 0.9 points), former Seoul mayor Oh Se-hoon was seventh at 4.7% (up 0.3 points), and Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong was tenth at 2.8% (up 0.1 points).

Combined support for Lee Nak-yeon and Lee Jae-myung declined 4.4 points month-on-month to 42%, while the opposition candidates in the top 10 collectively polled at 37.6%, up 6.4 points.

By Jang Na-rae, staff reporter

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