Venezuelan President Hugo Rafael Chávez Frias continues to enjoy a huge lead in his run for reelection to another six-year term as president, a new University of Miami School of Communication/Zogby International poll shows.
Chávez, representing the Fifth Republic Movement, wins 60% support from Venezuelan likely voters, compared to 31% for Manuel Rosales the governor of Zulia, representing Un Nuevo Tiempo, or A New Time party -- and just 1% for Benjamin Rausseo, a Venezuelan comedian endorsed by the Piedra party, the survey shows.
The survey, conducted November 12-18, 2006, included 800 likely voters nationwide in Venezuela, and carries a margin of error of +/- 3.5 percentage points.
Last month, Chávez led Rosales by a 59% to 24% margin, an earlier University of Miami School of Communication/Zogby International survey.
Chávez, who has built an international reputation for himself by becoming the Latin American thorn in the side of the United States - and specifically President George W. Bush - has also pushed for reforms at home to pull Venezuelans out of poverty, and to improve the public health care system in the nation, among other reforms. On the world stage, he has worked to enhance his influence with other nations, particularly in South and Central America, leveraging his nations substantial oil revenue to curry favor. He has built a particularly close relationship with ailing Cuba President Fidel Castro, long an opponent of the U.S.
The University of Miami School of Communication/Zogby International poll shows there is a sense of inevitability growing in the presidential race. Regardless of who they planned to vote for, 67% said they believe Chávez will win reelection. Seventy percent said they were happy with their choices for president. Among those who had made up their minds for whom to vote, 68% said they were very strong in their conviction for whom to vote. Another 23% said they were somewhat firm in their choices.
Asked whether Chávez deserves to be reelected, 60% agreed, while 33% said he does not deserve to win another six years in office. His popularity has been remarkably stable last month, 59% said he deserved to be reelected.
Chávezs lead in the race stems at least in part from his popularity and job performance 63% said they want his policies to continue (while 28% said they dont want them to continue), and 61% said they think the country is headed in the right direction, while 30% said they think things are off on the wrong track. Asked whether they were better off financially than they were six years ago at the beginning of the Chávez regime, 54% said things for them have improved, while 26% said things had not gotten better.
Among those who said Venezuela was heading in the right direction, 90% said they are better off financially than six years ago. Among those who said the fiery leader had led the oil-rich OPEC member state off onto the wrong track, 79% said they finances had not improved during Chávezs tenure.
The University of Miami is the largest private research institution in the southeastern United States. The University's mission is to provide quality education, attract and retain outstanding students, support the faculty and their research, and build an endowment for University initiatives. The school website is: www.miami.edu
