Approval of government falls to 9% in October: Verité Research survey

Latest ‘Mood of the Nation’ poll shows a large reversal in sentiment

• The Mood of the Nation poll is conducted three times a year and is based on an island wide, nationally representative sample of responses

• The survey is designed to assess the approval, satisfaction, and confidence of the nation in relation to the government, the country, and the economy

The approval rating of the government fell from 21% in June 2023 to 9% in October 2023 according to the latest round of the Gallup style ‘Mood of the Nation’ poll of Verité Research.   
The survey showed that satisfaction with the state of the nation also dropped by half to 6%,from 12% in June 2023.

The economic confidence score also fell from negative (-) 44 in June to negative (-) 62.   
The Mood of the Nation poll is conducted three times a year and is based on an island wide, nationally representative sample of responses. The survey sample and methodology are designed to limit the maximum error margin to under 3% at a 95% confidence level.   

Government approval: To the question “Do you approve or disapprove of the way the current government is working?”,9% said they approve (with an error margin of ± 1.93%). Further, 7% said that they do not have an opinion. The present approval rating is close to the 10% that it was in January and October 2022, and February 2023.   

Sri Lanka satisfaction: To the question, “In general, are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the way things are going in Sri Lanka?”, only 6% said they were satisfied (with an error margin of ± 1.66%). This rating was as low as 4% in February 2023.   

Economic confidence

The economic confidence score worsened to negative (-) 62 in October from negative (-) 44 in June. However, this was better than 2022 levels, when the economic confidence score ranged between negative (-) 96 and negative (-) 78.   
Multiple choice questions on the condition and trajectory of the economy are used to generate the economic confidence score. The score can range from negative (-) 100 to positive (+) 100.   
A score above zero means more people see the economic conditions positively rather than negatively. If everyone thinks that the economy is in poor condition (instead of good or excellent), and everyone also thinks it is getting worse (rather than better), then the score will be a (-) 100.   

Survey implementation

The Mood of the Nation survey is designed to assess the approval, satisfaction, and confidence of the nation in relation to the government, the country, and the economy. The poll is based on an island wide nationally representative sample of responses from 1,029 Sri Lankan adults, conducted from 21 to 29 October 2023.   
The poll is conducted as a part of the syndicated survey instrument of Verité Research with the polling partner Vanguard Survey (Pvt) Ltd. This instrument also provides other organisations the opportunity to survey the sentiments of Sri Lanka.