Approval of the government triples to 24% in July

Positivity Back to June 2023 Levels, reveals Mood of the Nation Survey by Verité Research

Over three times as many people approve of the government and feel better about the economy and the country’s economic trajectory compared to four months ago, according to the latest round of the Gallup style ‘Mood of the Nation’ poll of Verité Research.  

The survey revealed that the approval rating of the government more than tripled to 24% in July, up from 7% in February 2024. Current economic conditions were rated as either ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ by 28% of respondents, marking a threefold increase from 9% in February 2024. The share of people who believe that the country’s economic conditions are ‘getting better’ has also tripled, with 30% of respondents holding this view, up from 9% in February 2024.

The positivity in July 2024 is around the same level or a little higher than it was in June 2023, which was the highest level recorded since January 2022. The comparison is detailed below.

1. Government Approval Rating | 24%

To the question, ‘Do you approve or disapprove of the way the current government is working?’, 24% of the respondents said that they approve (with an error margin of ± 2.73%). The approval rating was higher than in June 2023, when it was 21%.

2. Economic Conditions Rating | ‘Good’ or ‘Excellent’: 28% 

When asked to ‘Rate the economic conditions in the country today’ as either excellent, good, or poor, 28% said it was ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ (with an error margin of ± 2.87%). This was around the same as June 2023, when it was 27%.

3. Economic Outlook | ‘Getting Better’: 30% 

To the question, ‘Do you think that the economic conditions in the country as a whole are getting better or getting worse?’, 30% of respondents believed that the economy was ‘getting better’ (with an error margin of ± 2.91%). This is around the same as June 2023, when it was 29%. 

Survey Implementation

This regularly conducted poll is part of the Syndicated Surveys instrument of Verité Research. The polling partner was Vanguard Survey (Pvt) Ltd. This instrument also provides other organisations with the opportunity to survey the sentiments of Sri Lankans.

The latest poll was based on a nationally representative multi-stage randomised sample of 1,038 Sri Lankan adults from separate households and was carried out from June 28th to July 6th. This survey was designed to have a maximum sampling error margin of ±3.04% at a 95% confidence level. Error margins can be further affected by lapses that could arise in the process of implementation.