IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
12:01 a.m. ET on April 23, 2024

Contacts: khorshied_nusratty@gallup.com

U.S. Approval Steady Before Election Year, But Election Results
Could Reshape U.S. Foreign Policy and the Global Order
Washington, D.C. -- A new Gallup report based on interviews in more than 130 countries shows
the world order remained largely unchanged in 2023. With approval ratings stuck in the 40s,
neither the U.S. nor Germany received a global endorsement of their leadership. However, bothwere still in much stronger positions than Russia — whose approval rating remained near arecord low after its invasion of Ukraine — and China — whose approval rating edged up slightly
but is still on the lower end of its trend.
Median approval of U.S. leadership stood at 49% before the often-criticized U.S. withdrawal
from Afghanistan in August 2021. However, the United States’ overall rating slipped after that,and Biden ended his first year in office with a 45% approval rating and a 33% disapproval rating.
Approval ratings declined further in Biden’s second year, and since then, median approval ofU.S. leadership abroad has been stuck at 41%. Disapproval crept up to 36% in 2023.
Key findings from Gallup’s Rating World Leaders 2024 report include:
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U.S. leadership ratings around the world remained flat; Germany was the top power forthe seventh straight year.
There were double-digit decreases in U.S. leadership approval in nine countries —including key regional partners — between 2022 and 2023 and double-digit increases in
13 countries.
Ratings for the U.S. slipped in Africa, while China and Russia gained ground.
As Russia’s war against Ukraine rages on, the majority of adults worldwide continue todisapprove of Russia’s leadership. Disdain for Russia remained strong in Europe.
However, there were signs of it softening elsewhere, particularly in Africa.
A new analysis compares “soft power” indicators and looks at the soft power of U.S.
leadership relative to China’s.

Implications Beyond 2024:
The lack of change in approval ratings of major powers in 2023 could be the world holding its
breath in anticipation of a potential shakeup in the global order. The world already knows it will
have President Vladimir Putin to deal with for at least the next six years. What will happen in
November 2024 in the U.S. is far less certain. The results could fundamentally reshape U.S.
foreign policy — again — and change its role in the global order.

The world could also see a change in Germany. Although Germany’s elections will not takeplace until late next year, a resurgence of the country’s far-right is raising questions about its
future leadership role in Europe and abroad.
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