March 03, 2008

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Mauricio Funes of the opposition leftist Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) holds an early lead against three prospective rivals in El Salvador’s presidential race, according to a poll by LPG Datos published in La Prensa Gráfica. 30.6 per cent of respondents would vote for Funes in next year’s ballot, while 25.5 per cent would back current vice-president Ana Vilma de Escobar of the governing Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA).

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Mauricio Funes of the opposition leftist Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) holds an early lead against three prospective rivals in El Salvador’s presidential race, according to a poll by LPG Datos published in La Prensa Gráfica. 30.6 per cent of respondents would vote for Funes in next year’s ballot, while 25.5 per cent would back current vice-president Ana Vilma de Escobar of the governing Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA).

In other contests, Funes holds a 6.5-point lead over former National Police chief Rodrigo Ávila, and a 10.6-point advantage over former presidential advisor Luis Mario Rodríguez.

Antonio Saca, a media businessman, was elected in March 2004 as the ARENA candidate, garnering 57.73 per cent of the vote. ARENA candidates have won the last four presidential elections in the Central American country. Saca is ineligible for a consecutive term in office.

In November 2007, Saca announced that ARENA would choose its next presidential nominee by holding a three-candidate internal nationwide primary in March 2008. On Feb. 26, ARENA revealed that Ávila, de Escobar, and Rodríguez would be the contenders.

Last month, during an election rally, Funes—a former broadcast journalist—said he is thrilled to participate in the presidential race, saying, "I feel really excited. No bad government can last for twenty years and no people can stand it. This government is on its way out."

The next legislative election is scheduled for Jan. 18, 2009, with a presidential ballot following on Mar. 15.

Polling Data

Which of these candidates would you vote for in the next presidential election?

Ana Vilma de Escobar (ARENA) 25.5% - 30.6% Mauricio Funes (FMLN)
Rodrigo Ávila (ARENA) 24.9% - 31.4% % Mauricio Funes (FMLN)
Luis Mario Rodríguez (ARENA) 22.4% - 33.0% Mauricio Funes (FMLN)

Source: LPG Datos / La Prensa Gráfica
Methodology: Interviews to 1,500 Salvadoran adults, conducted from Feb. 16 to Feb. 19, 2008. Margin of error is 2.6 per cent.