[Anchor]

President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating has dropped to 33.8 percent, the lowest level since taking office. The defection rate was particularly high among young adults and the progressive demographic.

Reporter Son Hyeong-an has the details.

[Reporter]

This is the result of a survey conducted by pollster Realmeter from the 7th to the 11th on 2,515 adults aged 18 and older nationwide.

In the evaluation of President Lee's state affairs performance, 33.8 percent gave a positive assessment, while 63.3 percent gave a negative one.

President Lee's approval rating fell 3.6 percentage points from the previous week, marking the ninth consecutive week of decline and reaching a record low since his inauguration.

By age group, the approval rating among those in their 20s and younger plummeted 10.2 percentage points from the previous week to 18.6 percent, showing a steep drop.

By ideological orientation, the approval rating among progressives fell 8 percentage points from the previous week to 49.3 percent.

Realmeter analyzed that "negative public opinion regarding controversies over cabinet personnel selections, the review of troop deployment to the Strait of Hormuz, and uncertainties in real estate policies spread, which, combined with a significant defection of progressive voters and young people in their 20s, drove down the approval rating."

An official from the presidential office stated, "The government is reflecting on its policies and will make efforts to restore trust."

Looking at party support ratings, the Democratic Party stood at 36.1 percent, down 5.7 percentage points from the previous week, while the People Power Party rose 4.5 percentage points to 42.1 percent.

In a Realmeter survey, this marks the first time since the fourth week of June that the Democratic Party's support rating has fallen below that of the People Power Party.

The Democratic Party recorded 63.5 percent among progressive voters, down 10 percentage points from the previous week, and 15 percent among those in their 20s, down 18.8 percentage points.

Meanwhile, the People Power Party's support rating among those in their 20s surged 21.2 percentage points from the previous week to 61.5 percent.

(Video by Ha Ryung and Yoon Hyung | Video Editing by Park Sun-soo | Graphics by Kim Han-gil and Park Tae-young)