Brazil President In Trouble? Approval Ratings For Jair Bolsonaro Tank In New Poll

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's approval rating has reached a low of 33% of people who think he is doing a "good" or "great" job.

On the other end, the percentage of Brazilians who think he is doing a "bad" or "awful" job rose to 33%, an increase from the 30% he received in April. The data was collected by Brazilian polling institute Datafolha.

A weak economy and a series of scandals are considered top reasons for Brazil's discontent with Bolsonaro.

The right-wing leader promised economic policies that would open up the Brazilian economy and reform the country's pension system. To achieve this, Bolsonaro appointed Paulo Roberto Nuno Guedes, a Chicago-trained economist and free-market guru, to transform Brazil's economy.

So far, Brazil hasn't been able to achieve pension reform, which Guedes fears could bankrupt the Brazilian state. This lack of action, along with high unemployment and an underperforming economic forecast, is hurting Bolsonaro's administration on the economy.

Brazil has also been swept up in a scandal revolving around Sergio Moro, Bolsonaro's Justice Minister. The Intercept Brasil reported questionable behavior under Moro when he was a judge during Operation Car Wash, an extensive corruption investigation that yielded criminal charges for dozens of members of Brazil's elite.

The Intercept's reporting showed that Moro engaged in ethical violations when he made the decision to convict former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula De Silva on corruption charges, which ultimately led to a 12-year prison sentence.

Lula, once a political star in Brazil, had challenged Bolsonaro for the presidency but could not run due to his prison sentence. This revelation has incited outrage in Brazil, as Bolsonaro was able to have an easier campaign by running against Lula's closest counterpart Fernando Haddad.

There has also been controversy surrounding Bolsonaro's son, Flavio, as financial authorities have flagged his account due to suspicious transfers of large sums of money. Flavio Bolsonaro's former driver has also received suspiciously large transfers of cash.

Jair Bolsonaro, a former military general, won the elections in 2018 by focusing on a campaign of cracking down on corruption and crime in Brazil. He is also known for his anti-LGBT positions and has been called the "Trump of the Tropics" due to his similarities to President Donald Trump.