Zapatero popularity rating on the up

11 October 2004

MADRID – Six months after coming to power, the Socialist government of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero is seven points ahead of the opposition, according to a poll published Monday.

The Spanish daily El Mundo, which conducted the poll, found the government was favoured by 44.3 percent of those questioned.

The conservative Popular Party (PP) won 37.4 percent of support from those polled, increasing the Socialists’ lead slightly, compared with an earlier poll.

The Socialists’ have increased their lead on the PP from five points – immediately after the 14 March general election – to seven points ahead.

The poll was carried out between 5-7 October after the PP’s first party congress since the general election.

Pollsters said the days after a party congress should see a rise in support nationally because of the media attention a political party receives.  

On a personal basis, the poll found that 51.3 percent supported Zapatero, compared with 13.9 percent who were against the prime minister.

The most popular ministers were Economics Minister Pedro Solbes and Defence Minister Jose Bono.

Spaniards also favoured many of the social reforms which the government has brought in including legalizing gay marriage and giving gay couples the right to adopt children and speeding up divorce.

There was only one matter which was not popular with most of  those polled: allowing former general Rodriguez Galindo out of jail for medical reasons.

Galindo was jailed for life for the kidnap and murder of two alleged ETA suspects in the Eighties in what was known as a ‘dirty war’ conducted by elements of the military and police against the Basque terrorist group.

[Copyright EFE with Expatica]

Subject: Spanish news