June 10, 2008

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Public support for Peruvian president Alan García increased last month but remains low, according to a poll by CPI. 32.2 per cent of respondents approve of the president’s performance, up four points since March.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Public support for Peruvian president Alan García increased last month but remains low, according to a poll by CPI. 32.2 per cent of respondents approve of the president’s performance, up four points since March.

In June 2006, García—a member of the American Revolutionary People’s Alliance (APRA)—won Peru’s presidential election in a run-off against nationalist Ollanta Humala of the Union for Peru (UP). In July, García officially took over as president. He had previously served as Peru’s head of state from 1985 to 1990, when he oversaw a major economic crisis.

On Jun. 5, Peruvian foreign minister Jose García Belaunde recalled the country’s ambassador to Bolivia after the Peruvian president was "insulted" by his Bolivian counterpart. Earlier in the week, Bolivian president Evo Morales had called García "overweight, but not very anti-imperialist." Morales was criticizing the Peruvian government for seeking a free trade agreement with the United States.

Polling Data

Do you approve or disapprove of Alan García’s performance as president?

	May 2008	Mar. 2008	Nov. 2007
Approve	32.2%	28.2%	28.8%
Disapprove	58.5%	64.7%	61.9%

Source: CPI
Methodology: Interviews with 1,300 Peruvian adults, conducted from May 8 to May 26, 2008. Margin of error is 2.9 per cent.