6-09-08, 1:07 pm
As El Salvador prepares for its 2009 national elections, a new poll conducted by the Public Opinion institute of the Central American University reveals that as many as 8 in 10 Salvadorans are dissatisfied with the leadership of President Elías Antonio Saca and his conservative, U.S.-backed ARENA Party.
The poll, taken in late May, also shows that more than 6 in 10 Salvadorans feel that Saca should no longer govern the country, according to analysis of the results of the survey produced by the Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES).
Much of the discontent has emerged due to El Salvador's deteriorating economic situation.
By contrast, a majority of Salvadorans view the opposition party, Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) as better equipped to solve the country's economic and social problems. Salvadorans, according to the survey, believe FMLN can clean up corruption, create jobs, and control inflation on consumer goods.
This wave of popular sentiment has benefited FMLN's presidential candidate, Mauricio Funes, who now holds as much as a 21 point lead over his ARENA opponent, Rodrigo Avila. (Saca will not be running.)
With strong popular criticism of Saca's economic policies and growing hardships, Saca is running an intensive and expensive public relations campaign to boost his party's image. The CISPES analysis says that FMLN parliamentarians have complained that Saca has spent about $108 million over the last year to publicize his policies, and these taxpayer-funded PR efforts have had no benefit for Salvadorans who are suffering under economic crisis.
Funes' huge lead in the polls in El Salvador have prompted increased interest by the Bush administration. According to CISPES director Burke Stansbury in an interview earlier this year, Bush has already attempted intervention in this election cycle in that country because he disagrees with the platform of Funes and his party.
'If [Funes and FMLN] were to win,' Stansbury said, 'it would be part of this trend of progressive parties and leaders winning in Latin America.'
--Reach Joel Wendland at
