(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Brazilian adults remain satisfied with their head of state, according to a poll by Instituto Sensus. 69.3 per cent of respondents approve of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s performance as president, up 2.5 points since February.

Lula—a member of the Worker’s Party (PT)—won the October 2002 presidential election with 61 per cent of the vote in a run-off against Jose Serra of the Brazilian Party of Social Democracy (PSDB). In October 2006, he earned a new four-year term, defeating PSDB candidate Geraldo Alckmin with 60.8 per cent of the vote in the second round. Lula is ineligible for a third consecutive term in office.

In 2006, Lula’s party was affected by a series of corruption scandals. The socialist-leaning president—also a former union leader—led a strong economy with conservative fiscal policies during his first mandate and has been praised for his poverty-reduction initiatives.

On Apr. 27, Lula criticized the reticence of wealthier nations to buy Brazilian biofuels, saying, "We have said that if we want to achieve success in the Doha Round (of World Trade Organization talks), then rich countries must lower their agricultural tariffs for poor countries’ products entering their markets. So, stop your hypocrisy and start buying biofuels."

Two years after the 1973 oil crisis, the Brazilian government—controlled at the time by a military junta—ordered the implementation of a nationwide program to gradually replace fossil fuels in favour of ethanol. Brazil’s ethanol is derived from sugar cane.

Polling Data

Do you approve or disapprove of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s performance as president?

Source: Instituto Sensus
Methodology: Interviews with 2,000 Brazilian adults, conducted from Apr. 21 to Apr. 25, 2008. Margin of error is 3 per cent.

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