Small plurality of Pakistanis support Bhutto

The throngs of supporters that surrounded Benazir Bhutto’s motorcade in Karachi before Thursday’s bomb attack demonstrated that the former prime minister still enjoys a good amount of support in Pakistan. The results of a poll just released by WorldPublicOpinion.org and taken in the weeks before her return would seem to bear this out. Half of ...

By , a former associate editor at Foreign Policy.
598594_Bhutto_Oct07_graph1_05.jpg
598594_Bhutto_Oct07_graph1_05.jpg

The throngs of supporters that surrounded Benazir Bhutto's motorcade in Karachi before Thursday's bomb attack demonstrated that the former prime minister still enjoys a good amount of support in Pakistan. The results of a poll just released by WorldPublicOpinion.org and taken in the weeks before her return would seem to bear this out. Half of the Pakistanis questioned supported Bhutto being allowed to return to stand for election. Former PM Nawaz Sharif had roughly the same amount of support. (Sharif was deported to Saudi Arabia after trying to return in early September.)

The throngs of supporters that surrounded Benazir Bhutto’s motorcade in Karachi before Thursday’s bomb attack demonstrated that the former prime minister still enjoys a good amount of support in Pakistan. The results of a poll just released by WorldPublicOpinion.org and taken in the weeks before her return would seem to bear this out. Half of the Pakistanis questioned supported Bhutto being allowed to return to stand for election. Former PM Nawaz Sharif had roughly the same amount of support. (Sharif was deported to Saudi Arabia after trying to return in early September.)

Bhutto came out on top narrowly when Pakistanis were asked who they thought should lead the country. She polled at 27 percent, with Sharif and current leader Pervez Musharraf tied at 21 percent. With a 3.3 percent margin of error, this is hardly a mandate. Still, it makes the 98 percent of the vote that Musharraf received in the recent presidential election seem even more ridiculous. 

Joshua Keating is a former associate editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @joshuakeating

More from Foreign Policy

The USS Nimitz and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and South Korean Navy warships sail in formation during a joint naval exercise off the South Korean coast.
The USS Nimitz and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and South Korean Navy warships sail in formation during a joint naval exercise off the South Korean coast.

America Is a Heartbeat Away From a War It Could Lose

Global war is neither a theoretical contingency nor the fever dream of hawks and militarists.

A protester waves a Palestinian flag in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, during a demonstration calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. People sit and walk on the grass lawn in front of the protester and barricades.
A protester waves a Palestinian flag in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, during a demonstration calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. People sit and walk on the grass lawn in front of the protester and barricades.

The West’s Incoherent Critique of Israel’s Gaza Strategy

The reality of fighting Hamas in Gaza makes this war terrible one way or another.

Biden dressed in a dark blue suit walks with his head down past a row of alternating U.S. and Israeli flags.
Biden dressed in a dark blue suit walks with his head down past a row of alternating U.S. and Israeli flags.

Biden Owns the Israel-Palestine Conflict Now

In tying Washington to Israel’s war in Gaza, the U.S. president now shares responsibility for the broader conflict’s fate.

U.S. President Joe Biden is seen in profile as he greets Chinese President Xi Jinping with a handshake. Xi, a 70-year-old man in a dark blue suit, smiles as he takes the hand of Biden, an 80-year-old man who also wears a dark blue suit.
U.S. President Joe Biden is seen in profile as he greets Chinese President Xi Jinping with a handshake. Xi, a 70-year-old man in a dark blue suit, smiles as he takes the hand of Biden, an 80-year-old man who also wears a dark blue suit.

Taiwan’s Room to Maneuver Shrinks as Biden and Xi Meet

As the latest crisis in the straits wraps up, Taipei is on the back foot.