DPK's Lee Pulls Ahead As Conservative Yoon Slumps In Poll

The latest opinion poll from Gallup Korea ahead of the 9 March presidential election shows liberal Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) canddiate Lee Jae-myung with a widening lead over conservative People Power Party (PPP) candidate Yoon Seok-youl.

• Preferred candidate for March 2022 presidential election: Lee Jae-myung (DPK, Liberal): 36% (-1), Yoon Seok-youl (PPP, Conservative): 26% (-5), Ahn Cheol-soo (PP, centrist): 15% (+6). +/- vs. 27-28 December 2021. Fieldwork: 4-6 January 2022. Sample size: 1,002
• Yoon had been seen as the frontrunner for the presidency. He gained popularity as the hardline Prosecutor General of South Korea, but his inexperience in frontline politics and a number of blunders during the presidential campaign have dented his prospects.
• The declining support for the PPP's Yoon has boosted the fortunes of centrist People Party (PP) candidate Ahn Cheol-soo. Ahn ran in the 2017 election, coming in third place with 21.4% of the vote. Polls have shown that he is seen as a more 'appropriate' candidate for president, and there remains the prospect that the PPP could seek to shift its support behind Ahn (who held talks of a merger between the PPP and PP in mid-2021) in an effort to remove the DPK from power.