Evo Morales backed by 79% of the population

LA PAZ, FEBRUARY 26
A poll published this Sunday by a national daily indicates that the Bolivia’s President Evo Morales is supported by 79% of the population after one month in government, five percent up on when he assumed the position January 22, according to an AFP dispatch.

The poll included 1,011 individuals of both sexes between 18 and 70 years old in the cities of La Paz, Santa Cruz and Cochabamba, and was carried out in the last week of February by the private polling company Apoyo, Opinión y Mercado for the daily publication La Razón.

Vice President Alvaro García Linera enjoys 71% approval, according to the poll.

A significant number of the individuals consulted are also confident in Morales’ ability to carry out the election of a Constituent Assembly and a referendum on regional autonomy on the projected date of next July 2.

Both issues are part of current debate on the political and social agenda and are causing friction between the government and the opposition and the private business sector of Santa Cruz, the most developed region of the country.

Despite doubts raised over both democratic processes, a resounding 87% of the combative city of El Alto, neighboring La Paz, believe that Morales will fulfill his promise to form a Constituent Assembly, while 85% expect the autonomy referendum to go ahead.

In La Paz, center of Bolivian political power, Evo’s support is also overwhelming, as is the case in Santa Cruz.

In addition, 66% think that Morales will last out his mandate of five years in a country marked by political instability that, for diverse reasons, has gone through five governments in the last five years.