Former Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos is the leader in Gallup’s latest opinion poll on the popularity of Colombian presidential candidates, despite the fact that he is yet to officially launch his candidacy.
The Gallup poll released Tuesday found that 57% of Colombians surveyed have a “favorable opinion” of Santos.
Santos is followed by pre-candidates Noemi Sanin with 56%, Antanas Mockus and Enrique Peñalosa both with 55% and Sergio Fajardo with 50%.
Gallup Colombia found that only 29% of Colombians surveyed have a favorable opinion of scandal-ridden former agricultural minister and pre-candidate Andres Felipe Arias.
Presidential candidate Gustavo Petro is perceived negatively by 44% of those surveyed and perceived favorably by 28%.
The poll also found that Colombian President Alvaro Uribe’s approval rating is at its lowest in eight years, at 63%. The drop in Uribe’s rating follows the ruling by Colombia’s Constitutional Court that the referendum to allow his re-election is unconstitutional.
Meanwhile, Colombians’ favorable opinion of the court jumped from 59% last poll to 67% in this poll.
42% of Colombians surveyed said the situation in Colombia is improving, while 41% think it is getting worse.
Regarding foreign leaders, 75% of Colombians has positive views on U.S. President Barack Obama, while 93% viewed Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in a negative light.
The poll was conducted in major Colombian cities from February 24 to 28.
1,200 Colombians participated in the poll.