(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Rafael Correa has maintained his popularity in Ecuador, according to a poll by Cedatos/Gallup. 54 per cent of respondents approve of Correa’s performance as president, up one point since June.

Correa, a former finance minister, ran for president as an independent leftist under the Alliance Country (AP) banner. In November 2006, Correa defeated Álvaro Noboa of the conservative Institutional Renewal Party of National Action (PRIAN) in a run-off with 56.69 per cent of the vote. He officially took over as Ecuador’s head of state in January 2007, and vowed to change the country’s Constitution. Correa’s party nominated no candidates to the National Congress.

In April 2007, Ecuadorian citizens participated in a referendum to enact a Constituent Assembly. The president’s proposal was backed by 82 per cent of all voters. In September, Correa’s supporters—running under the Movement Country (MP) banner—secured 80 seats in the 130-member Constituent Assembly, enough to enact changes without seeking compromises with political opponents.

In November, Ecuador’s Constituent Assembly officially began its work, and suspended the National Congress. The proposed Constitution must be ratified in a nationwide referendum in 2008. The Constituent Assembly has discussed a wide variety of topics, including the possibility of consecutive presidential re-election, as well as new oil and mining regulations.

Earlier this month, Correa reshuffled his cabinet, replacing finance minister Fausto Ortiz with Wilma Salgado. On Jul. 16, Ortiz warned that the new minister could put Ecuador’s economy in danger by making the "wrong choices" on foreign debt, saying, "She will not be the minister that points out the great risks of taking action against debt. This is the major worry in the coming weeks while she is in office."

Salgado is a member of Jubilee 2000, an advocacy group seeking the pardon of foreign debt for developing nations. In the past, Correa has referred to foreign debt as "illegal."

Polling Data

Do you approve or disapprove of Rafael Correa’s performance as president?

Source: Cedatos/Gallup
Methodology: Face-to-face interviews with 1,433 Ecuadorian adults, conducted from Jul. 11 to Jul. 14, 2008. Margin of error is 3.2 per cent.

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