Brazilians have become more dissatisfied with the way President Michel Temer is running their country, a new poll says, as his policy of fiscal discipline continues to generate more public discontent.
The survey published by pollster MDA on Wednesday showed that more people, about 36.7 percent of the 2,002 individuals surveyed, consider Temer's government “bad” or “terrible.” The figure showed more than a nine-percent increase compared with a previous poll conducted in early June.
The poll also said that disapproval of the way Temer himself was governing had also grown by more than 11 percent to reach 51.5. The previous study, which came three weeks after Temer took over from his ousted predecessor, Dilma Rousseff, showed a disapproval rate of 40.4 for the Brazilian president.
The poor approval rates come amid Temer’s unpopular austerity drive as he seeks a congressional endorsement for a cap on public spending. Temer’s administration, which came into office on pledges of fighting corruption, has itself faced similar allegations over the past months, leading to more discontent.
Among the main elements of Temer’s reform plans, which he says are needed to balance Brazil's overdrawn government accounts and plug the country’s widening fiscal deficit, is an overhaul in the costly pension system.
The MDA study said, however, that the majority of those polled believe that Temer had the power and support in the congress to advance his reforms. It also said that 14.6 of the people had rated the Temer administration as “great” or “good,” up from 11.3 percent in early June.
The poll was commissioned by the national transport lobby, CNT, between October 13 and 16. It had a margin of error of 2.2 percentage points.
Temer took office after Rousseff was impeached and dismissed over a series of allegations of financial wrongdoing and breaking budget laws. The charismatic Rousseff fought hard to resist the parliamentary motion, which she continued to call a coup until the very last moment it was approved.
