The Democratic Party of Korea is distancing itself from some government policies and President Lee Jae Myung’s political decisions while shifting its parliamentary focus toward livelihood issues amid weaker approval ratings. Party officials say the change is intended to restore public support, not signal a rupture with the presidential office. Controversial legislation, including a special counsel bill on alleged fabricated prosecutorial indictments and a provision to drop charges in Lee’s cases, is being postponed. The party has also criticized the introduction of single-stock leveraged exchange-traded funds, opposed parts of the government’s Aug. 13 real estate measures, and challenged Lee’s appointment of former People Power Party lawmaker Inn Yo-han as president of the Korean Red Cross. At a parliamentary workshop on the 28th, leader Kim Min-seok called for a “people’s livelihood first” approach, an “all-out war system” assigning specific missions to lawmakers, and monitoring of prices, household debt, exchange rates, markets and vulnerable borrowers after the Bank of Korea’s base rate hike. National Index Survey polling found that 65% of respondents, or 63% in another account of the same Aug. 24–26 poll, supported Lee clarifying that he will not run in the next presidential election; 57% viewed the Aug. 13 real estate measures as ineffective, Lee’s approval rating was 50%, and the Democratic Party led party support at 41%.