Disapproval of President José Antonio Kast rose two points to 65%, according to CNN Chile, which on Wednesday reported the results of the Cadem poll for the second week of September. It is the highest level since the start of his term.
The President's approval stood at 32%. The source does not detail how that figure changed from the previous survey.
The poll also measured perceptions of security, one of the Government's core priorities. 56% of respondents point to the Government as the main party responsible for dealing with crime, three points more than in the previous survey. Next come the courts and judges, at 27% (-2), the PDI (Investigations Police of Chile) and Carabineros (Chile's national uniformed police), at 10%, and prosecutors, at 3% (-1).
The CNN Chile report does not explicitly attribute the rise in disapproval to any specific factor. However, the increase in those who hold the Executive responsible for crime coincides with the rise in disapproval.
Among the crimes that cause the most fear, robbery or theft with violence leads at 35% (+7 points). It is followed by carjackings, known in Chile as "encerrona" or "portonazo", at 30% (-10), home burglary, at 29% (-2), homicides or contract killings, at 27% (+5), and violence in public spaces, at 22% (-2).
On policy measures, 54% support allowing the president to preventively declare a state of emergency in the face of potential threats. A curfew divides the public more: 47% are in favor and 46% against.
Regarding the security reform, the proposal with the most support is barring people convicted of organized crime from running for elected office, at 91%. It is followed by giving Gendarmería (Chile's prison service) more powers to segregate inmates, at 85%, and putting organized crime on the same footing as terrorism, at 70%.
That reform is under debate in the Congreso (Chile's National Congress). Security Minister Arrau backed an alternative text submitted by senators, which replaces the Government's original proposal and which, as he acknowledged, is less far-reaching in order to win support.
