Elderly people living in poverty are one of the most vulnerable population groups who are at risk of experiencing social exclusion. Social participation is an important contributing factor to active aging and social integration of the older adults living in poverty. This study aims to identify factors affecting social participation of the poor elderly. Data from the second wave of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing was used for the analyses and 1,346 poor elderly aged over 65 were analyzed. The findings showed that age, education, health status, a level of depression, financial stress, and economic activity were associated with the social participation of the elderly living in poverty. These results indicated that psychological empowerment and specific needs of the older adults living in poverty should be considered in developing services and programs to promote social participation of the poor elderly.