Laura Chinchilla administration sees approval rating drops to 37 percent

The popularity of the president of Costa Rica, Laura Chinchilla, dropped four points since October, from 41 percent to 37 percent according to a poll published Monday.

A little more than one-third of Costa Ricans view Chinchilla’s work as favorable, 19 percent consider her first year in office “unfavorably” and 44 percent are neutral, revealed a poll done by the firm Unimer and published in the daily La Nación.

In October, 41 percent of citizens saw Chinchilla’s administration as favorable, and 17 percent saw it was unfavorable.

The poll was done between March 7 and 15, and surveyed 1,202 people. It has a margin of error of 2.8 percent.

The country’s faith in Chinchilla’s leadership has taken a big hit since she took power on May 8, 2010. When she took office, 74 percent saw Chinchilla as a woman of strong leadership, but that number has been reduced to 58 percent.

Furthermore, almost 60 percent of the population feel that the president has not defined the primary areas where the administration is focusing.

Almost half – 44 percent of Ticos – believe the government should focus on reducing crime and assisting public safety, while 13 percent said Chinchilla should give priority to reducing unemployment and lowering the cost of living.