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The Gallup poll published on 31 October 2017 in Hoy newspaper captures a snapshot of politicians that eligible voters have in mind for the 2020 presidential elections. Some 1,200 eligible persons were polled nationwide by Gallup from 14-20 October 2017. The margin of error of the poll is +\/- 2.8%.
\nThere are some surprising results to the question of who the polled person thinks should be the presidential candidate of each party in the May 2020 elections.<\/p>\n
There is much uncertainty about the presidential candidate for the PLD. President Danilo Medina of the ruling PLD party, was mentioned by 21.7% of those polled. The 2015 Constitution impedes him from running again for office. There was the same situation prior to his running for office in 2016. President Danilo Medina then pushed forward a change in the 2010 Constitution that enabled him to run for President in 2016. He won with a 62% of the vote. The ruling PLD party is absolute majority in Congress and thus mathematically has the sufficient votes in Congress for a second change of the Constitution.<\/p>\n
Former President Leonel Fernandez, who heads a dissident faction within the PLD party, scored 17%. He is eligible to run for President according to the 2015 Constitution.<\/p>\n
Vice President Margarita Cede\u00f1o (wife of President Leonel Fern\u00e1ndez) scored 5.8% on the Gallup poll.<\/p>\n
Others that have been mentioned as pre-candidates have scored much less, including Tourism Minister Francisco Javier Garc\u00eda (2%), president of the Senate Reynaldo Pared P\u00e9rez (1.6%), Santiago Mayor Abel Mart\u00ednez (0.8%), Public Works Minister Gonzalo Castillo (0.4%).<\/p>\n
The president of the Foundation for Institutionalism and Justice, Servio Tulio Casta\u00f1os has remarked that if President Danilo Medina were to run again for the PLD, the political party would divide. When PLD partisans were asked the same question about who should be the party\u2019s presidential candidate in 2020, these were divided: Danilo Medina 35.1%, Leonel Fernandez (24.9%), Margarita Cede\u00f1o (6%).<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the differences are more marked in the leading opposition party, the PRM. Former presidential candidate Luis Abinader received 28.8%, compared to his contender former President Hip\u00f3lito Mej\u00eda with 13.4%, and Santo Domingo Mayor David Collado with 3.8%. PRM partisans clearly favor Abinader, with 48.3% to 6.9% for Mej\u00eda. Abinader received 35% of the vote in the 2016 presidential election.<\/p>\n