Poll finds prosecutors trusted more than police

Nearly half of Koreans trust prosecutors more than police, according to a September Media Tomato poll of 1,035 adults nationwide. The survey comes as the official abolition of the Prosecutors’ Office takes effect on Friday. Prosecutors led police in trust across all age groups except people in their 60s and in every region surveyed.

In the Media Tomato poll, 47.5 percent of respondents said they trusted prosecutors more, while 28.4 percent chose police officers and 24.1 percent were unsure.

Among people in their 20s, 54.1 percent chose the prosecution and 17.2 percent picked the police.

Gallup Korea’s separate survey in the same month gave the police an institutional trust score of 3.3 out of 10, its lowest level since 2009.

Published Oct 1, 2026 2:53 pm KST

Acting National Police Agency Commissioner General Kim Jong-chul, left, and other senior police officers salute during a public event on police reform at the National Police Agency in Seoul, Sept. 17. Newsis

Nearly half of Koreans say they trust the prosecution more than the police, highlighting the challenge facing the police ahead of the official abolition of the Prosecutors’ Office on Friday.

In a poll conducted in September by Media Tomato of 1,035 adults nationwide, 47.5 percent of respondents said they trusted prosecutors more, compared with 28.4 percent who chose police officers. Another 24.1 percent said they were unsure.

The prosecution led the police in public trust across every age group except those in their 60s, where the gap was still within the survey’s margin of error. Among respondents in their 20s, 54.1 percent chose the prosecution and 17.2 percent picked the police. The comparable figures were 60.5 percent and 18.3 percent for people in their 30s.

The prosecution also held an edge among those in their 40s and 50s — age groups viewed as a key support base for the liberal governing bloc. Among those in their 40s, 43.7 percent chose the prosecution, compared with 33.3 percent for the police. Among those in their 50s, the figures were 42.9 percent and 34.4 percent, respectively.

By region, the prosecution was more trusted than the police in all areas surveyed. The largest gap appeared in Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, a conservative stronghold, where 64.1 percent chose the prosecution and 19.6 percent the police. Even in the liberal Honam region, the prosecution led the police by 42.2 percent to 32.6 percent.

The results varied sharply by political orientation. Respondents who identified themselves as conservatives overwhelmingly favored the prosecution, by 75.1 percent to 12.5 percent, while liberals preferred the police, by 52.8 percent to 20.7 percent. Centrists sided with the prosecution by 50.5 percent to 20.3 percent.

A separate Gallup Korea survey the same month put the police’s institutional trust score at 3.3 out of 10, its lowest level since 2009.

The figures suggest that rebuilding public confidence in police investigations and discipline will be a key task as Korea’s restructured criminal justice system takes effect.

根据Media Tomato 9月份对全国1035名成年人进行的民意调查，近半数韩国人更信任检察官而非警察。这项调查发布之际，正值韩国检察机关正式于本周五被废除。除60岁以上人群外，在所有年龄段和所有受访地区，检察官的信任度均高于警察。

在 Media Tomato 的民意调查中，47.5% 的受访者表示他们更信任检察官，28.4% 的人选择警察，24.1% 的人表示不确定。

在 20 多岁的人群中，54.1% 的人选择起诉检方，17.2% 的人选择报警。

盖洛普韩国在同一个月进行的另一项调查显示，警方的机构信任度得分为 3.3 分（满分 10 分），这是自 2009 年以来的最低水平。

发布于2026年10月1日下午2:53（韩国标准时间）

9月17日，在首尔国家警察厅举行的警务改革公开活动上，代理国家警察厅长官金钟哲（左）与其他高级警官敬礼。（Newsis）

近一半的韩国人表示他们更信任检察机关而不是警察，这凸显了在周五检察机关正式废除之前，警察面临的挑战。

Media Tomato 于 9 月份对全国 1035 名成年人进行的一项民意调查显示，47.5% 的受访者表示他们更信任检察官，而选择警察的受访者仅占 28.4%。另有 24.1% 的受访者表示不确定。

除60多岁年龄段外，检方在所有年龄段的公众信任度均高于警方；在60多岁年龄段，检方与警方的信任度差距仍在调查误差范围内。在20多岁的受访者中，54.1%的人选择检方，17.2%的人选择警方。30多岁人群的相应数据分别为60.5%和18.3%。

在40至50岁年龄段的人群中，检方也占据优势——这一年龄段被视为自由派执政联盟的重要支持基础。在40多岁的人群中，43.7%的人选择检方，而选择警方的仅占33.3%。在50多岁的人群中，这两个数字分别为42.9%和34.4%。

按地区划分，在所有受访地区，民众对检方的信任度均高于警方。差距最大的地区是保守派的大邱和庆尚北道，64.1%的受访者选择检方，而只有19.6%选择警方。即使在较为自由的湖南地区，民众对检方的信任度也高于警方，分别为42.2%和32.6%。

调查结果因政治倾向而异。自认为是保守派的受访者绝大多数支持检方，支持率高达75.1%，反对率仅为12.5%；而自由派受访者则更倾向于警方，支持率分别为52.8%和20.7%。中间派受访者中，支持检方的比例为50.5%，反对率仅为20.3%。

同月，盖洛普韩国的另一项调查显示，警方的机构信任度得分为 3.3 分（满分 10 分），是 2009 年以来的最低水平。

数据显示，随着韩国刑事司法体系的改革生效，重建公众对警方调查和纪律的信心将是一项关键任务。