São Paulo residents see less fear of violence yet still cite police shortage as top safety concern

A Datafolha poll of 1,608 adults in 71 municipalities of São Paulo state shows that the share of people who say they are very afraid of being assaulted on the streets fell to 47% in 2026, down from 57% in 2022. Fear of robbery at traffic lights also dropped to 45% from 54% a year earlier. The decline mirrors lower crime figures reported by the state public‑security secretariat.

Despite the easing of fear, 20% of respondents still name a lack of policing as the main public‑security problem, the highest‑rated issue in the survey. That proportion fell four points from 2022 but remains above other concerns such as robberies (11%) and drug trafficking (8%). The shortage is felt most in the capital and metropolitan area, where 24% of residents cite it as the top problem, compared with 17% in interior municipalities. Women and older voters are slightly more likely to point to police absence, and the perception varies by political alignment, with 25% of potential Fernando Haddad voters naming it the chief issue versus 19% of Tarcísio de Freitas supporters.