Global Poll: How the World Sees the 2008 Election

Our exclusive international poll reveals Obamamania abroad-and the enduring allure of the American Dream.

By Carl M. Cannon

From Reader's Digest

Citizen of the World

It's a good thing for John McCain that only American citizens can vote in U.S. presidential elections. If the election were held overseas, or even in the rest of North America, the Republican nominee wouldn't stand a chance.

This was just one of the remarkable findings in a new Reader's Digest Global Poll in which we asked people in 17 countries, including the United States, to name the issues they care about most and tell how they feel about the United States and the presidential contenders. (For an explanation of the poll methodology, see below.)

"It's Obama by a landslide—except in the country in which he's actually running for president," says John Fredricks, director of polling and research for Reader's Digest. "What is most striking is the margin of his support."

The lopsided result abroad is a measure partly of the widespread disaffection with George W. Bush. A negative consensus about the American president first gained momentum abroad with Bush's dismissal of global
warming. The disapproval rate intensified with the invasion of Iraq. As a staunch supporter of that war, McCain symbolizes the Bush status quo—and an era the world wants to leave behind.

"Obama represents something different," says Klas Bergman, director of communications for the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. "He seems ready to listen rather than dictate. That he's African American only adds to the mystique."

Other factors are at play as well. For starters, the media elite, especially in Europe, tends to be liberal, and its news coverage of the U.S. election reflects this slant. The upshot is that the ordinary Dutchman or Englishwoman—or Indonesian, for that matter—receives a steady diet of positive Obama coverage. Also, in fairness to the GOP nominee, the Republican party is organized around a set of conservative attitudes and principles that are distinctly American in nature. These range from support for gun rights and low taxes to antipathy to legal abortion and centralized governmental control. In addition, youth and charisma are as compelling on the world stage as they are at home. Domestically, Obama runs strongest among young voters, who helped him emerge as the winner in the Democratic primaries. The same skew is evident abroad, where McCain's strongest support is among voters 55 and over.

The poll suggests that America is still a nation that inspires—even at a time when many abroad disapprove of some of our most visible policies. To much of the world, an African American presidential candidate serves as a reminder of America's promise and of the soaring ideals expressed in the Declaration of Independence. Moreover, this particular African American-born in Hawaii, with a father from Kenya, raised partly in Indonesia—is truly a citizen of the world.

International Concerns

"This is most poignant in Africa, where people look at him and say, 'He's one of us,'" says Bruce Stokes, a member of the Pew Global Attitudes Project research team. "But it's true in Asia and other places as well. There is a fascination with his lineage."

All of which raises the question: Will Obama's popularity in other countries persuade American voters that he's the right choice in November? It's an argument that Obama wants to make, albeit delicately. After his acclaimed July sojourn to the Middle East and Europe (our poll was completed before that trip), Obama told a Washington journalist that the adoring throngs who greeted him abroad "may not be decisive for the average voter right now, given our economic troubles, but it's knowledge they can store in the back of their minds for when they go into the polling place later."

For his part, John McCain does not minimize the international dimensions of the 2008 presidential election either. Having vanquished the isolationist elements in their own party during the primaries, the McCain-led Republicans came out of their Minnesota convention looking outward. The call for victory in Iraq is accompanied by the belief that pulling out our military troops prematurely would erode American prestige in the world as well as harm other U.S. interests abroad. In other words, both of these nominees are on the record as possessing what Thomas Jefferson called "a decent respect to the opinions of mankind"—language in the preamble to the Declaration of Independence, reminding us that Americans have always sought the world's approbation.

Our poll also shows that there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all worldview and that priorities differ dramatically among countries. We presented eight issues for consideration: terrorism, the war in Iraq, the global economy, global poverty, human rights, the environment, international trade, and nuclear proliferation. Among Americans, the global economy ranks first; terrorism, second; and Iraq, third. The latter is understandable—it's our war—yet the contrast with other nations is stark. Only Russians are more concerned than Americans with terrorism.

In seven nations, the environment comes out on top as a major concern. Global poverty, which tallied a minuscule 4 percent among Americans, is the No. 1 issue in six nations—and second in six others. While the low ranking of global poverty in America could be interpreted as indifference, another explanation is more likely: In the United States, that concern is often accompanied by a plea for more foreign aid. Most Americans believe world poverty is better addressed by a thriving global economy, which explains its position atop America's list. On this subject, we are most like respondents in Asia: In India, Indonesia, and Taiwan, the global economy also ranks high.

Land of the Second Chance

That the U.S. is at odds with the rest of the world on these issues might be a translation problem. In American politics, a simple phrase like "environmental protection" is fraught with partisan meaning; it could be considered a stand-in for "Al Gore." A respondent in Brazil hears the same phrase and thinks of the rapid deforestation in the Amazon.

Perhaps the most gratifying news here is that anti-Washington sentiment abroad doesn't extend to all Americans. We asked participants to share their views on the U.S. government; rather than the rampant anti-Americanism we expected—especially because of the war in Iraq—the United States got a good share of support. In only half of 16 countries did "anti-American" edge out "pro-American," and usually narrowly.

The bad news is that our neighbors, Mexico and Canada, are among those eight—as is Indonesia, the only majority Muslim country surveyed. In India, Americans are held in high esteem; likewise in Poland, where four times as many people are pro-American as opposed. The British are apparently still our friends, and our government is tolerated in France.

Speaking of which, a majority of the French—the French!—express an interest in relocating to the United States. To some, this number might seem like a typographical error. Philippe Labro, a well-known French writer and filmmaker, told Reader's Digest that to the French, "the reality of the American Dream" is embedded in the life stories of both presidential candidates. "America is still that land of the second chance, of multiple opportunities, where anyone can succeed," he attests.

This view certainly prevails in India. Some 73 percent of respondents there express interest in relocating to the United States, which begs the question of where we'd put another, oh, 800 million people. Perhaps there's some room in Canada, even though only about 25 percent of the Canadians surveyed say they'd consider moving south.

In Mexico, the nation that already sends the most immigrants our way, one third of those polled say they'd relocate here—a number that would surely be larger if the millions who have already voted with their feet could have been polled before they made the trip. They're here already, presumably waiting—along with the rest of the world—to see whom U.S. voters choose as their next president.

If the World Could Vote
We asked a straight horse-race question—the kind pollsters in America pose every day during the stretch run of an election year—with one wrinkle: Most of our respondents, not being American citizens, cannot vote. They have a clear preference, however: It's Barack Obama, everywhere.

What They Think of Washington
Our question was put in unsentimental terms: "When you think of the U.S. government, do you consider yourself pro-American, neutral, or anti-American?"

In Their Own Words
Our international editors hit the streets and interviewed their own citizens-and came away with these responses:

"World poverty is the largest problem because it is the source of many of the other problems."
--Markus Rapp, Germany

"The next president of the United States must solve the immigration problem. I lived in L.A. and saw lots of Mexicans coming in every day. They don't have any social security and get paid below minimum wage. The whole situation is making Americans more resentful of Mexicans and vice versa."
--Igor Figueroa Ochoa, Mexico

"We, the United States, and many other countries advocate world peace, but we are actively destroying the environment. Global warming and the melting glaciers are growing increasingly severe."
--Guan-ming Chen, Taiwan

"I would leave my country, France, because I like the U.S.A. I like the country and I like the opportunities."
--Tewfik Guennoun, France

"McCain is very much of the presidential mold ... the type you'd expect Hollywood to send from central casting."
--Keith Suter, Australia

"It is harder to do business in Russia, but I would never move to the U.S.A. ... Motherland is not something you choose. I am not even trying to play patriotic; I just think nobody needs us there."
--Vadim Fedichev, Russia

The Issues That Unite and Divide
Country by country, the priorities are, well, all over the map. Which of these global issues is most important to you? Russia is the only country in which fear of terrorism ranks higher than in America; India, Indonesia, and South Africa are the only ones in which the environment falls low on the fix-it lists. Environmental protection and global poverty top all the other rankings. Nuclear proliferation rated low everywhere.

Who Would Move Here if They Could
Asians and Africans consider the United States a path out of poverty. And while most Eastern Europeans would stay at home, the French see us as the land of second chances.

About Our Poll
Surveys were done in June and July by Synovate, an international polling organization. In the Netherlands and Finland, local firms were retained. Questions were posed online, by telephone, and in person to 17,000 respondents. The poll's margin of error is approximately 3 percent.