For the first time in a decade, Nicaraguans are feeling good about the direction of their country, according to a new CID-Gallup poll.

More than half of all Nicaraguans—55%— say the country is on the correct path forward, while only 32% say things are moving in the wrong direction.

That marks a huge turnaround in perception from five years ago, when President Daniel Ortega returned to power and 63% thought the country was going in the wrong direction, and only 25% were optimistic about the future.

“Now it appears that the storm has passed and for the first time since 2002, Nicaraguans have hope again, which is expected after a presidential election, despite the accusations of alleged fraud and corruption,” according to CID Gallup’s report.

The polling numbers also suggest that people don’t seem to pay much mind to the growing international criticism about Nicaragua’s eroding state of democracy under the power-grabbing presidential couple. In fact, 57% think Nicaragua’s democracy will improve under Ortega.

People are also feeling plucky about their president. Ortega enjoys a 50% approval rating, his highest to date, according to CID-Gallup.

Not only are most Nicaraguans content with the way things are going, but they are feeling more encouraged than ever before. According to CID-Gallup, which has been taking Nicaraguans’ political pulse since 1993, the only other moment in the country’s modern democratic history when Nicaraguans were feeling quite so giddy about the future was 1996, when 49% thought the country was pointing in the right direction.

And while 59% of the population doubts the Ortega administration will be able to lower the cost of living (one of the main concerns among the population), most are optimistic that his government will continue to improve health and education services and that more foreign investment will enter the country to create new jobs in the years to come.

Though 38% think their economic situations will improve over the next year, the rub for Ortega will be his ability to create jobs—the top priority for Nicaraguans, according to the poll.

While Ortega gets good marks in education and security, his numbers dip considerably in the area of job creation—especially, presumably, among the 21,000 state workers who have been canned since the Sandinistas returned to power in 2007.

Ortega’s ability to keep Nicaragua in smiles will mostly likely depend on continued economic growth and job creation in the coming years, according to the survey results.