SANTIAGO (Reuters) – Voters planning to reject Chile’s new constitution in an upcoming plebiscite reached a record 46%, surpassing the percentage of voters planning to approve it for the first time, a private poll revealed on Monday.
The survey, by pollster Cadem, showed that disapproval rose by 13 points since polling started in late January. Voters planning to approve the new constitution dropped from 56% to 40% in that same time frame, with a 10 point dip since late March.
Controversies over property rights, the elimination of the Senate and the fate of private retirement funds have shaken public opinion.
“Regarding the issues that are discussed in the convention, 50% prefer that there be a Chamber of Deputies and a Senate, 72% consider that society is multicultural and not multinational, 73% are in favor of freedom of choice in pensions to through a mixed system and 75% prefer that the contributions continue to be savings for the workers,” the pollster said.
The constitutional assembly is the result of a referendum in which citizens overwhelmingly voted to draft a new Magna Carta to replace the one inherited from the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.
Mistrust in the assembly rose seven points to 55%, its highest level since November 2021, Cadem said. Meanwhile, the perception that the necessary agreements are being reached fell 10 points to 42%.
The body has until July to present the new constitution that will then face a mandatory plebiscite towards the end of the year.
The survey also showed that approval of President Gabriel Boric fell five points to 45%, while disapproval rose to 35%, a rise of 15 points in two weeks.
(Report by Fabián Andrés Cambero, writing by Alexander Villegas; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
