President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating increased to 37 percent from a month ago, according to a survey conducted jointly by Yonhap News Agency and Yonhap News TV on Wednesday. The survey also showed that the ruling People Power Party and the main opposition Democratic Party would secure 33 percent and 32 percent of the vote, respectively, if the parliamentary elections scheduled for next April were held tomorrow. Yonhap News Agency and Yonhap News TV jointly commissioned the survey to gauge p

The South Korean government vowed Wednesday to ease regulations and reduce administrative procedures to promote the swift and smooth implementation of major corporate investment projects, including S-Oil Co.'s petrochemical plant project and the US Sphere Entertainment Co.'s K-pop arena construction plan. The government presented a set of tailored deregulatory measures for a total of 18 projects led by private companies worth 46 trillion won ($35.06 billion) combined as part of efforts

First lady Kim Keon Hee traveled to the southern county of Goheung on Tuesday to meet with a group of lepers at a hospital known for treating the patients. Kim visited Sorokdo National Hospital in Goheung, 328 kilometers south of Seoul, and comforted the patients while also encouraging the medical staff, according to the presidential office. Sorokdo is the name of the island where the hospital is located. Two Austrian nurses -- Marianne Stoger and Margaritha Pissarek -- spent 43 years on the i

Ex-ruling party chair's switch to English in addressing naturalized party reform head stirs debate over racism

Around 30 presidential staff, including senior secretaries, to vie for parliamentary seats

Former Justice Minister Cho Kuk has hinted at the possibility of running for the National Assembly in next year's general elections, in a bid to restore his honor. Appearing on a YouTube show hosted by left-leaning broadcaster Kim Ou-joon, Cho expressed his desire to clear his name through legal means while currently standing trial. However, if his legal efforts do not yield the desired results, he said he is considering "nonlegal measures" to rebuild his reputation. “It c

Proposed bill: Partial Amendment to the Fair Transactions in Franchise Business Act Proposed by Rep. Yu Eui-dong (People Power Party) ● Under the current act, franchisers can designate goods or services vital for trademark protection as “essential items” and require their franchisees to trade these items with particular trading partners. However, a growing number of disputes have arisen between franchisers and franchisees due to excessive designation of essential items and price hike

President Yoon Suk Yeol is expected to replace several senior secretaries, including those in charge of press affairs and political affairs, in line with the resignations of those preparing to run in next year's parliamentary elections, sources said Monday. Yoon is considering promoting presidential spokesperson Lee Do-woon to the position of senior secretary for press affairs to replace Kim Eun-hye, who is expected to resign next month to run for a seat in the Bundang district of Gyeonggi

President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating rose for the second consecutive week to 36.8 percent, a poll showed Monday. The survey, conducted by the polling agency Realmeter, showed the positive assessment of Yoon's performance increased by 1.1 percentage points from the previous week, while 60.2 percent of respondents disapproved of his performance, down 1.7 percentage points. Yoon's approval rating had rebounded to 35.7 percent last week, following a two-week decline. The pollster

A debate is roiling in South Korea over the plan to make Seoul larger, a recycled election promise that is failing to win voters in and out of the capital, polls reveal. Enlarging Seoul is a recurring proposal in South Korean politics -- interpreted as being intended to sway voters in the capital’s many satellite cities -- renewed by the People Power Party with the general election less than six months away. The plan was previously endorsed in past elections by some candidates with the Dem

The ruling People Power Party has officially requested the government increase budgets in research and development to improve the working conditions of young scientists, a lawmaker said Friday. The request comes amid criticism of the government's double-digit percentage cut in the R&D budget, originally planned to improve inefficiencies in how the money is being spent. The budget for the sector dropped to around 25 trillion won ($18.7 billion), marking the first reduction in eight years

A few days after the Islamist militant group Hamas entered Israel on Oct. 7 and killed more than a thousand civilians, posters sympathizing with the deadly attacks popped up on several South Korean college campuses. The posters, which defended the Hamas attacks as an act of self-defense by Palestinians, were taken down shortly after -- but the debate on the war continues to rage on. Speaking to The Korea Herald, one Seoul university sophomore said she was “stunned by such open support for

South Korea's ruling People Power Party on Thursday approved a plan to lift the suspensions of four party members, including outspoken dissenters former party Chairman Lee Jun-seok and Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo. The decision, effective immediately, enables the individuals to become eligible to run for a parliamentary seat as a member of the ruling party in the upcoming general election scheduled for April 2024. Lee had been imposed with a suspension from party membership for 1 1/2 years by

The ruling People Power Party launched a special committee on Thursday to discuss its heatedly debated proposal of integrating the neighboring city of Gimpo into the capital city of Seoul. This committee will be headed by Rep. Cho Kyoung-tae, a five-term lawmaker and a civil engineering doctorate holder with expertise in urban design, Rep. Park Jung Ha, the party's spokesperson, told reporters. The envisioned plan, which aims to include the northwestern city of Gimpo in Gyeonggi Province su

The ruling People Power Party decided Thursday to lift the membership suspensions imposed on former party leader Lee Jun-seok and Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo over alleged misconduct, endorsing one of the first reform measures recommended by its innovation committee. The PPP accepted the committee's "grand amnesty" request and nullified the disciplinary measures taken against Lee, Hong and two other members in a gesture of unity before next year's general elections, according to