President’s Approval Rating Drops To 28%

Argentine President Cristina Fernández’s approval rating fell two points to 28% in November, according to a new survey by the consulting firm Poliarquia Consultores. The poll was carried out between November 3-18, or after Fernández announced plans to nationalize Argentina’s 14-year-old private pension fund system.

Fernández’s approval rating seems to have settled in at around this level, with a bit more than a quarter of the population saying they like what the president is doing. Though down, her favorable numbers are still up from a 20% low in June, but way down from her 54% high in December. Some 39% of the population views the president negatively, up from 33% a month ago.

Fernández is most popular among people aged 18-29 and least popular with those above 50. She is most popular in Patagonia and least popular in the country’s farming heartland, or the Pampas region. Fernández also is most popular among people who have gone to high school and least popular among those who have done college-level coursework.

Both Fernández and her husband and predecessor, Néstor Kirchner, have repeatedly slammed public opinion polls, saying that these surveys merely reflect the perspectives of those who pay for them. Both have also said repeatedly that their own surveys show them to be much more popular. To the best of my knowledge, neither has ever released the details of such surveys.

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