February 26, 2007

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Public support for Evo Morales increased this month in Bolivia, according to a poll by Apoyo, Opinión y Mercado. 65 per cent of respondents approve of their president's performance, up six points since January.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Public support for Evo Morales increased this month in Bolivia, according to a poll by Apoyo, Opinión y Mercado. 65 per cent of respondents approve of their president's performance, up six points since January.

Morales—an indigenous leader—won the December 2005 presidential election as the candidate for the Movement to Socialism (MAS), with 53.72 per cent of the vote. He officially took over as Bolivia's head of state in January 2006.

In August 2006, the National Constituent Assembly, tasked with re-writing Bolivia's constitution, held its first session. The assembly can sit for one year, and its proposed body of law must be approved by two-thirds of the 255 lawmakers, and then ratified in a nationwide referendum.

On Feb. 22, Morales ratified in public that his country will not reimburse a Swiss mining company for nationalizing its tin smelter plant. According to the president, Bolivia took over Glencore International's facility because it was acquired illegally. Glencore has announced it will seek international arbitration.

At a press conference, Morales explained his rationale, saying, "If they can document indisputably that they have invested in modernizing the plant, that they spent money on modernization beyond just the purchase price, then we'll have to pay. But if they can't show that investment, they'll have to reimburse us."

Polling Data

Do you approve or disapprove of Evo Morales' performance as president?

	Feb. 2007	Jan. 2007	Dec. 2006
Approve	65%	59%	62%
Disapprove	31%	36%	33%
No opinion	4%	5%	5%

Source: Apoyo, Opinión y Mercado
Methodology: Interviews with 1,011 Bolivian adults in La Paz, El Alto, Cochabamba and Santa Cruz, conducted from Feb. 8 to Feb. 14, 2007. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.