NNN/Bluedot Poll: J’cans Marginally More Optimistic About Direction of the Country

There’s been a marginal increase in the number of Jamaicans who believe the country is headed in the right direction. That’s according to the latest Nationwide Bluedot polls, powered by Total Tools.

Thirty six per cent of Jamaicans say the country is headed in the right direction. That’s up four percentage points from the 32 per cent who held a similar view in February this year.

But despite the increase, it’s still less than the 39 per cent of Jamaicans who say the country is on the wrong track.

George Davis has more in this report.

As the political clock continues ticking towards this year’s general elections, signs are emerging Jamaicans are feeling marginally more optimistic about the direction of the country.

The Bluedot pollsters asked 1,618 registered voters whether they thought the country was headed in the wrong direction or right direction.

Thirty-six per cent of them said right. Thirty-nine percent said wrong. Twenty-five per cent, unsure.

That 36 per cent who held a positive sentiment is the highest recorded in these polls since 2021, when the positive sentiment stood at 34 per cent.

Notably, the increased positive sentiment comes amid a 40 per cent reduction in murders and a 50 per cent reduction in poverty. The pollsters reason that those national developments may be influencing public perception.

But before the Labourites break out the confetti and start sipping on the green Kool Aid, the negative sentiment in the population still outstrips the positive feeling about the direction of the country. This means a larger plurality of the population still believes the country is on the wrong track.

But the Holness administration may take some comfort in the fact that the negative 39 per cent plurality is down marginally from the 42 per cent who said Jamaica was on the wrong track three months ago.

It should also be noted that 39 per cent is the second lowest negative sentiment recorded in these polls since 2021. At that time, 26 per cent believed Jamaica was on the wrong track.

It’s also eight points less than the high of 47 per cent recorded in negative sentiment in 2023.

The political affiliation of the respondents appears to be driving some of the sentiment.

There’s been a 12 percentage point increase in the number of Labourites who believe the country is headed in the right direction, moving from 62 per cent in February to 74 per cent in the May polls.

Comrades are also expressing optimism, albeit marginally; moving from 9 per cent in February to 12 per cent in May.

There’s been no change in the positive perception of unaffiliated voters.

Across all affiliations, the negative sentiment has fallen.

The number of Labourites who say Jamaica is on the wrong track has declined from 18 per cent in February to 10 per cent in May.

And while Comrades continue to express extreme pessimism, that number has also fallen, moving from 73 per cent earlier this year to 71 per cent in this edition of the polls.

Unaffiliated voters have seen a four percentage point fall in negative sentiment, declining from 44 per cent three months ago, to now standing at 40 per cent.

The Nationwide Bluedot polls, powered by Total Tools, were conducted between May 2 and 17. It has a margin of error of +/- 2.3 per cent.

Meanwhile, middle aged and older voters are expressing higher levels of confidence in the direction of the county when compared to their younger counterparts.

The Bluedot pollsters found a 10 percentage point increase in those who believe the county is headed in the right direction in the 45 to 54 age cohort.

That positive sentiment moved from 31 per cent three months ago, to 41 per cent in this edition of the polls.

There’s also been a five percentage point increase in positive sentiment among voters aged 35 to 44-years-older. That number moved from 32 per cent in February to 37 per cent in May.

Voters over 65-years-old recorded the sharpest decline in negative sentiment as it relates to the direction of the county, falling from 45 per cent in February to 37-percent in May. That’s an eight percentage point decline.

Middle aged voters 45 to 54-years-older, reported a six percentage point decline in negative sentiment. In February’s poll, 42 per cent of them said the country was headed in the wrong direction. That negative sentiment now stands at 36 per cent.

Both women and men saw a 4-percentage point improvement in their positive sentiment towards the direction of the country.