Poll

Fewer than half of Brazilians ‘positive’ about World Cup

Fewer than half of Brazilians are positive about the upcoming FIFA World Cup, a new poll by Datafolha published on Monday has shown.

Some 2,091 Brazilians across the country were asked about their expectations towards the tournament which begins on 12 June in São Paulo: only 46% were positive about the event – 13% said ‘excellent’ and 33% responded ‘good’.

Brazil World Cup fans. Photo from travelblog.org

Brazilians are torn over their expectations for this year’s World Cup. Photo from travelblog.org

Thirty percent of those questioned in the survey had no strong feelings either way, and the remaining 24% concluded the World Cup would be ‘bad’ or ‘awful’ – 8% and 16%, respectively.

“It allows [us] to say that 30% [of those surveyed] have some reservations over, and 24% totally reject, the hosting of the World Cup in Brazil,” Datafolha Director General Mauro Paulina was quoted by Folha de S.Paulo newspaper as saying.

A breakdown of the survey showed that most positive evaluations of the World Cup came from those who had only basic education and those in the lowest two income bands – the so-called ‘D’ and ‘E’ economic classes.

The results for this latest survey are a far cry from a similar survey in November 2008, in which 79 percent of respondents said they were positive about the World Cup.

The survey also asked whether the respondents were interested in football and the World Cup: 76% said they were interested in football, and 81% said they had an interest in the tournament itself.

Some 82% of people said they planned on watching World Cup fixtures – which increased to nine-in-ten if only male respondents are counted.

Beset by problems

Although the survey clearly shows that Brazilians have an interest in both the sport and the tournament, it does appear to show only lukewarm confidence in the country’s ability to host the event.

This latest survey has highlighted the difficulty that both FIFA and the Brazilian government have faced in garnering support for the event, with a build-up beset by problems: from major delays with stadiums and the very unpopular overall R$33 billion (US$14 billion) price tag to a number of construction site deaths and the downsizing or scrapping of a number of associated infrastructure projects.

13 March 2014 - World Cup Protest in São Paulo, Brazil - Photo by Ben Tavener

Protests against the World Cup, although smaller than in 2013, have continued in São Paulo. Photo by Ben Tavener.

Discontent over the preparation phase of the World Cup led to over a million Brazilians taking to the streets last June, in a show of anger against the government’s – and now, increasingly, FIFA’s – handling of the event.

Indeed, although mass protests against the World Cup have petered out, for now at least, a fourth round of protests against the World Cup – under the banner of “Não Vai Ter Copa” (“There Will Be No World Cup”) – is scheduled for Thursday in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and at least two other major cities in Brazil.

The survey comes as FIFA General Secretary Jérôme Valcke arrives in Rio for a week of meetings concerning the tournament’s final preparations.

Despite the negativity and many concerns by FIFA over the event’s preparations, President Dilma Rousseff has repeatedly promised a “Cup of Cups” and correspondents say that the World Cup will likely ultimately be saved by the country’s residual love for the game.

However, the Olympics, which are due to be held in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, may not fare as easily, as many of the sports are alien and not available to ordinary Brazilians.

Extended version written for Anadolu Agency

Rousseff ‘would win re-election without runoff’

Brazil’s incumbent president Dilma Rousseff would win a second term in office comfortably and without a runoff if this year’s general elections were held today, an influential pollster in the country said on Thursday.

Despite a first term in office dominated by a stagnant economy and, later, anti-government protests, Rousseff would still hold a wide lead over her rivals, according to the poll by the Brazilian Institute of Public Opinion and Statistics, IBOPE.

Brazil President Dilma Rousseff. Photo by Roberto Stuckert Filho.

Brazil President Dilma Rousseff has a wide lead over rivals for October’s presidential elections. Photo by Roberto Stuckert Filho.

The survey of 2,002 people conducted between 13 and 17 March, which had a margin of error of ±2%, gave the current president a vote share of between 40% and 43%, depending on which opponents she faced.

IBOPE gave those surveyed a variety of scenarios given not all candidates may yet have officially entered the race.

Rousseff’s nearest rival was Aécio Neves, a senator from Minas Gerais state and member of the country’s main opposition party, the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB). He would garner around 13% of the vote, the poll suggested.

PSB candidate Eduardo Campos, who recently launched a scathing attack on the president, would get 6% of votes and third place.

Crucially, the IBOPE survey showed that many Brazilians have yet to make up their minds. Many responded that they would spoil their vote or simply did not know yet.

Ibope survey

The IBOPE survey shows Rousseff would get 40%, Neves 13% and Campos 6%, but that 24% would spoil their ballot and 12% were unsure. Graphic by G1.

Although the Brazilian electoral system would normally require a candidate to reach the 50 percent threshold in order to avoid a second round, the pollster said that Rousseff would get more votes than all other candidates combined and therefore take the election in the first round.

Voting in the general elections on 5 October, based upon which the president, deputies, senators, state governors and state legislatures are appointed, is mandatory but Brazilians can spoil their vote or not vote for a legitimate reason which they then have to ‘justify’ to the authorities.

The news was welcomed by Rousseff and her Workers Party (PT), particularly after her approval ratings slumped from over 60% towards the beginning of her presidency to just 31% in the wake of last year’s mass anti-government protests, which saw over a million Brazilians take to the streets – although this had recovered to around 40% by November 2013.

Some 7% of respondents said they would vote for the former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, although he is not running and has publicly backed Dilma Rousseff, whom he put forward for the 2010 elections after reaching a maximum of two terms in office.

President Lula left office with approval ratings of 83%.

Extended version of report written for Anadolu Agency

Dilma Sees Drop in Popularity Poll

An opinion poll carried out by Datafolha has shown an eight-point drop in approval for Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, the first major fall in popularity suffered by the president since taking office.

President Rousseff drops 8 points in a Datafolha opinion poll of over 3,750 Brazilians.

President Rousseff drops 8 points in a Datafolha opinion poll of over 3,750 Brazilians.

The proportion of people answering “good” or “excellent” slumped from 65% in March this year – the highest so far recorded for Rousseff – to 57% at the beginning of June.

Some 3,758 people from across Brazil took part in the survey, and the president fell in the estimation of every group – among both men and women and all areas of the country, age brackets, income levels and education backgrounds.

The biggest change in opinion was reflected among top-earners (24 points down), as well as those with further education (16 pts), from the President’s native South region (13 pts) and 25- to 34-year-olds (13 pts).

The survey also showed growing pessimism for the country’s economy, rising concern over inflation, and more people worrying about unemployment in the future.

However, despite the reported drop in popularity for Rousseff, whose popularity has at times even rivalled that of her much-admired predecessor, she remains favourite to win a second term in office at the presidential elections next year, with the results pointing to the president getting around 51 percent of the vote if it were held today.

President Rousseff’s close allies in government were quick to play down its significance, labelling it a “blip” and something that would be corrected when the economy was back on track.

However, those in opposition tried to capitalize on the results, particularly rival presidential candidate Aécio Neves (PSDB), who said the figures showed the current government’s “growing fragility due to various wrong decisions, especially on the economy.”

Read the full article in The Rio Times