Public approval for South Korean president dips as #MeToo allegations hit liberal politicians

SEOUL, March 11 (UPI) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in's approval rating has taken a dip, as major figures in his political circle became embroiled in sexual harassment scandals.

A Realmeter survey on Monday showed public approval for Moon's handling of state affairs fell to 65.8 percent last week, down 0.7 percentage points from the week before.

This compares to a Gallup Korea survey last week, which showed approval had surged to more than 70 percent after Moon's top envoys brokered an agreement on a summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Despite the progress seen in relations with North Korea as well as its agreement to freeze nuclear and missile testing during denuclearization talks, public opinion on the president slipped as various liberal politicians faced #MeToo allegations.

Between Monday and Friday, the amount of Google searches on liberal heavyweight Ahn Hee-jung who was accused of raping his secretary multiple times was nine times as much as searches on President Moon, Kim Jong Un or Donald Trump, the Realmeter said.

The level of support for Moon's ruling Democratic Party also fell 1.9 percentage points to 48 percent.

The latest survey was conducted from Monday to Friday last week on 2,502 South Korean adults with a confidence level of 95 percent. The margin of error is plus or minus 2 percentage points.