Venezuelans Prefer Maduro to Opposition Administration, says New Poll

Analysts partly attribute the upswing in support for the president to his government's increasingly popular grassroots food distribution network, the CLAPs. 

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Caracas, October 17, 2017 (venezuelanalysis.com) – A poll conducted by the private firm Hinterlaces has revealed that the majority of Venezuelans prefer reform under the current presidency of Nicolas Maduro to a transition to opposition government.  

Published on Sunday, the Hinterlaces opinion poll was carried out between September 26 and October 4 via telephone interviews with 1580 respondents throughout the country. The results show that 51% of Venezuelans favour a resolution to the country’s problems under the current president, as opposed to 43% who back a change of government. 

The findings also indicate that support for an opposition government could be waning, with 24% of respondents indicating that they had “a lot of trust” or “trust” in the political opposition’s ability to resolve the country’s economic problems, as against 53% who said that they had “little” or “no” confidence.  

The pollster attributes the recent jump in Maduro’s popularity levels to the reappearance of scarce staple goods and hygiene products on shop shelves, the increasing efficacy of the neighbourhood food distribution initiative known as the CLAPs, and recent salary hikes. A previous Hinterlaces poll this October has shown 58 percent of Venezuelans support the CLAPs, while 45 percent find the program effective, in comparison to just 33 percent in September. 

However, analysts are still unsure whether the government’s increased popularity will prove to be short-lived or is indicative of a broader trend. 

The Hinterlaces poll has a 2.5% margin of error.