Published :
Updated :
For all latest news, follow The Financial Express Google News channel.
A new survey has suggested nearly half of the supporters of the Awami League, which is barred from contesting in the election, may back the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) in the Feb 12 ballot.
The findings of a joint study conducted by the Communication and Research Foundation (CRF) and Bangladesh Election and Public Opinion Studies (BEPOS) were presented on Wednesday at the National Press Club under the title “Uncovering the Public Pulse: A Nationwide Survey”.
According to the survey, 48 percent of Awami League voters indicated support for BNP’s Sheaf of Paddy symbol.
More than one third (37.4 percent) of voters who joined the electorate after 2008 expressed preference for Jamaat e Islami.
In a statement issued after the event, the organisations said: “Nearly half of Awami League voters, around 48 percent, are now supporting the BNP.”
The survey was conducted in two phases between Nov 20 and Dec 31, covering 11,038 voters through stratified random sampling.
Researcher and CRF Strategic Coordinator Zakaria Polash presented the findings, while UK’s University of Reading Visiting Professor M Niaz Asadullah and the Shahjalal University of Science and Technology Professor Md Shahabul Haque joined as discussants.
Over 90 percent of respondents said they intend to vote, while around 8 percent remain undecided or plan not to participate, according to the statement.
The trend showed little variation across gender, age, education or location.
Corruption was identified as the most important issue by 67.3 percent of voters, while 35.9 percent highlighted religion.
The survey found that 30.2 percent of voters would base their choice solely on the candidate, while 33.2 percent said they consider both candidate and party.