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Funes Could Claim Victory in El Salvador
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Former broadcast journalist Mauricio Funes could win tomorrow’s presidential election in El Salvador, according to a poll by CID-Gallup. 44 per cent of respondents would vote for the candidate of the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN), up five points since February.
Rodrigo Ávila of the governing conservative Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA) is second with 38 per cent, up three points since February. 18 per cent of respondents remain undecided, or would vote for other candidates.
ARENA’s Antonio Saca, a media businessman, was elected in March 2004, 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 September 2007, Funes became the FMLN’s presidential nominee. In March 2008, Ávila, a former National Police chief, won ARENA’s three-candidate internal nationwide primary.
The FMLN was once an umbrella armed group of left-wing revolutionaries fighting against the Salvadoran establishment. In the early 1990s, the FMLN was disbanded and became a legal political party. Funes is the first FMLN presidential candidate with no past as an armed guerrilla member.
The FMLN had a strong showing in the Jan. 18 election to the Legislative Assembly, winning 35 seats. ARENA finished second, with 32 mandates.
On Mar. 9, Ávila said at a stadium rally that Funes would govern under the influence of Venezuelan left-wing president Hugo Chávez if elected, declaring, "Are we going to allow El Salvador to fall into Chávez’s control? Do we want to see our family and children living a better life with progress and freedom? Then, my brothers, on 15 March we must all go to vote early in the morning."
The presidential ballot will take place on Mar. 15.
Polling Data
Which of these candidates would you vote for in the next presidential election?
|
|
Mar. 2009 |
Feb. 2009 |
Nov. 2008 |
|
Mauricio Funes (FMLN) |
44% |
39% |
44% |
|
Rodrigo Ávila (ARENA) |
38% |
35% |
31% |
|
Other / Undecided |
18% |
26% |
25% |
Source: CID-Gallup
Methodology: Interviews with 1,222 Salvadoran adults, conducted from Feb. 26 to Mar. 3, 2009. Margin of error is 2.8 per cent.