Morales' popularity up before Bolivia recall: poll

[Judi Lynn]

Morales' popularity up before Bolivia recall: poll
Sun Aug 3, 2008 3:47pm EDT
By Carlos Alberto Quiroga

LA PAZ (Reuters) - Bolivian President Evo Morales' approval rating rose to 59 percent in July, according to a poll published on Sunday, a margin that would see him survive a recall vote next week if voters poll accordingly.

Morales and a group of opposition governors face a recall vote on August 10 that the leftist leader proposed last year in a bid to undermine right-wing opponents who have challenged his economic and constitutional reforms.

Pushing for autonomy, they have forced him to put on hold his plan to redistribute land to poor farmers.

An Ipsos Apoyo poll of 1,002 people published in newspaper La Razon showed Morales' approval rating rose from 57 percent in June. It was his highest approval rating measured by the pollster in nine months.

However the survey did not measure voting intention.

Morales, who took power in the poorest nation in South America two years ago, needs to win 46.3 percent of the vote to stay in office.

More:
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSN0326638720080803?rpc=401&feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&rpc=401

[Judi Lynn]

1. Recall referendum opinion polls ratify Bolivian president

Monday, August 4, 2008

Recall referendum opinion polls ratify Bolivian president

Bolivian president Evo Morales is comfortably favored for ratification in the recall referendum of next August 10 with 59% support, according to the latest public opinion poll published Sunday in the capital La Paz main daily La Razón.

President Morales, vice president Alvaro García and eight governors (six from the opposition) will submit their posts to the voting booths as part of an agreement to overcome the ongoing political stand off with the opposition, which has virtually paralyzed the land locked South American country.

President Morales support is particularly strong in the country’s main four cities. His support was 56% last March, while disapproval dropped from 40% in March to 37% in July.

The public opinion poll interviewed 1.002 people, between July 19 and 27, in the cities of La Paz, El Alto, Cochabamba and Santa Cruz. Results have a plus/minus margin error of 3 percentage points.

More:
http://www.mercopress.com/vernoticia.do?id=14154&formato=HTML