Poll provides an early indication of presidential candidate support in August’s cross death election

A poll released Wednesday by Click Research offers a first post-cross death look at how Ecuadorian voters feel about the prospective presidential candidates. It is also clarifies what they think of the cross death and the biggest issues facing the country.

Cuenca attorney and anti-mining activist Yaku Pérez officially announced his candidacy for president on Thursday.

Among possible presidential candidates, the yet-unnamed nominee from the Corresista Citizen’s Revolution party leads the field with 32.23% support, followed by Yaku Pérez (Somos Agua, Democracia Sí and Unidad Popular), 25.17%; the yet-unnamed candidate of the Social Christians (probably Jan Topic), 25%; former vice president Otto Sonnenholzner, 23.39%; former Assemblyman Fernando Villavicencio, 19%; Leonidas Iza, 15.14%; and Guillermo Lasso (if he decides to run), 14.39%.

On other poll questions, an overwhelming 74% of respondents support President Guillermo Lasso’s cross death and 56% said he should concentrate on fighting crime until a new government takes office while 26.5% said creating jobs should be the top priority.

On the question of whether Lasso’s management of the government would improve in the next six months, 75% said no compared to 25% who said it would.

When asked about the condition of the country, 91% said it was “bad” while only 9% said it was “good,” with crime being the top concern.

Reflecting the results of other polls, Click respondents gave the Armed Forces the highest support among the country’s institutions, at 54.24% followed by the National Police, 43.65% and the corporate and business community, 43%.

Voters rated the National Assembly as the worst institution with a 4.63% positive rating, followed by the judiciary, 12.51%, and Lasso’s presidency, 19%.

Click pollster Ronny Castro said the high level of support for the cross death was the most surprising finding of the poll. “We thought this would generate more controversy, but it turns out the public supports it by a big margin,” he said.

In the presidential race, Castro said it is too early to speculate about the ultimate winner but added that some trends were emerging. “We were surprised that the Citizens Revolution candidate only rated 32% — we thought the number would be higher given the party’s strength in the last election. This number could increase when a candidate is named but If the party runs with [Andrés] Arauz again his reputation as a loser could be a problem.”

The click poll was conducted through face-to-face interviews in 2,280 households in Pichincha, Guayas, Azuay and Manabi Provinces, the country’s most populous provinces.