According to a Hamilton-Beattie – Listin Diario survey, a total of 39% of the people interviewed were convinced that the country was off course and on the wrong road. A total of 25% thought that things were fine and 33% were of a divided opinion. The survey shows a marked improvement compared to one that was carried out last November, and which showed 42% unfavorable and 20% approval levels. In the latest effort, 37% of the women interviewed showed a negative perception of the nations course and also a 37% mixed opinion. Only 23% of the women polled felt that the nation was on the right course. The men were more decidedly opinionated, with 42% saying that things were not going the right way and 29% with mixed feelings. However, a higher percentage of men felt that the nation was headed in the right direction, 29%. As reflected by region, the northern part of the country, the 13 provinces of the Cibao region, showed a 43% disapproval level, a 31% mixed opinion and a 24% positive take on things. In the south, the numbers were less positive, with 46% negative, 31% mixed and only 21% positive. Out in the east, the people were slightly less against the ways things are going, but many were either undecided or couldn’t make up their minds, with 38% in each of the categories. Only 22% were positive.
One interesting aspect of the survey was that people in the higher income brackets were more negative in their perception of how things were going, 42%, versus 22% who gave a positive rating. Of the lowest income brackets, a total of 48% of those interviewed, 40% did not like the way the country was headed and 33% reported mixed feelings. Farmers were the ones who expressed the highest negative feelings (52%), followed by professional people (45%). Above all, the survey showed the eternal optimism of the Dominican people with 50% expressing their faith that things would get better over the coming year.