Seoul:<Text>
President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating has fallen for a second consecutive week, according to a recent survey, following his controversial decision to grant special pardons to political figures. In a Gallup Korea survey conducted from Tuesday to Thursday, the positive assessment of Lee's performance fell to 56 percent, marking a decline of 3 percentage points from the previous week.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the negative assessment of President Lee increased by 5 percentage points, reaching 35 percent. Respondents expressed discontent with Lee's decision to pardon political figures and businesspeople, accusing him of excessive welfare and livelihood support, and citing his perceived inadequacies in diplomacy as further reasons for their negative views.
President Lee's approval rating has seen a notable decline, dropping from 64 percent in mid-July to 59 percent last week, before falling further to the current 56 percent. The recent pard ons, which included several politicians convicted of embezzlement and other serious offenses, have sparked public debate. Among those pardoned was former Justice Minister Cho Kuk, who was convicted of academic fraud related to his daughter. Cho was released early Friday after serving eight months of his two-year sentence.
In the same survey, the ruling Democratic Party and the main opposition People Power Party saw their approval ratings rise by 3 percentage points each, reaching 44 percent and 25 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, support for the minor Rebuilding Korea Party, which was founded by Cho last year and rejoined following his release, stood at 4 percent. The survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.