Bolsonaro faces record backlash over handling of pandemic: Poll

The Brazilian Folha de S.Paulo newspaper has published a poll that reveals that 54% of respondents rated Prime Minister Jair Bolsonaro's handling of the pandemic as 'bad' or 'very bad'. The survey comes just as Brazil's daily new cases hit the 90,000 mark with over 2,600 additional deaths reported on the same day.

The Datafolha poll also shows that confidence in Bolsonaro has dipped since 2020 where 48% of respondents rated the Bolsonaro presidency and its handling of the COVID-19 crisis poorly.

Brazil has sworn in Dr Marcelo Queiroga as the new Health Minister, its fourth so far since the pandemic, in an effort to introduce stricter social distancing measures as well as increase hospital capacity to deal with the surge in cases.

Bolsonaro's COVID-19 skepticism has drawn the ire of the national and international public, with several incendiary statements made such as terming it as a "little flu", downplaying deaths and insinuating that the vaccine provided could turn people into "crocodiles". In recent remarks broadcast on social media, he also claimed that he was "logically happy" with protests against social distancing measures in parts of Brazil that were put under lockdown.