Brazilian president enjoys high level of approval amid COVID-19: survey

RIO DE JANEIRO - Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro continues to maintain his highest level of approval among the population since his term began in January last year, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a survey released Sunday by the firm Datafolha.

According to the survey, 37 percent of Brazilians consider Bolsonaro to be a "good or very good" president, the same level registered in August.

The percentage of Brazilians who described Bolsonaro's term as "bad or abysmal" went from 34 percent to 32 percent, while the percentage of people who rated him "average" has increased from 27 percent to 29 percent.

However, overall, the Datafolha data showed that Bolsonaro still has the lowest popularity of any first-term president since 1985.

Bolsonaro scored his highest approval ratings among businessmen with 56 percent and in the central-west and northern regions of Brazil.

His lowest approval ratings were seen among students and people with a higher level of education, which stood at 49 percent and 48 percent, respectively.

Brazil has the world's second highest COVID-19 death toll, after the United States, and the third largest caseload, next to the United States and India.

According to a report from the country's Ministry of Health on Sunday, Brazil has registered over 6.9 million cases and more than 181,000 deaths from COVID-19.