This article lists international opinion polls taken in various countries around the world during 2008 relating to the 2008 United States presidential election . Most polls measured foreign preference for Democratic candidate Barack Obama and Republican candidate John McCain. For international reaction to the election, see International reaction to the United States presidential election, 2008.
Most polls during the 2008 election year showed greater global support for Senator Barack Obama over Senator John McCain. A poll for the BBC World Service conducted in 22 countries found Obama favored in each one by varying margins, with an overall average of 49% preference for Obama, 12% for McCain, and 40% with no preference. [3] Similarly, a 73 country Gallup poll found that 24% of those polled favored Obama compared with 7% who favored McCain; 69% of those surveyed had no opinion. [4] An international Reader's Digest survey also reported more support for Obama than McCain in all 16 foreign countries polled, though not in the U.S. itself. [5] However, certain countries did prefer McCain to Obama in some polls, including Israel, Georgia, Laos by a small margin, and the Philippines (which is in contrast to the capital Manila). [6]
A poll done by the Pew Global Attitudes Project investigated whether other countries believed American foreign policy "will change for the better" with a new president. Although majorities held this belief in several major European and African countries, 67% of Japanese respondents said it would not change very much and more Jordanians and Egyptians believed American foreign policy would get worse than better. In terms of confidence in the candidates, the Pew poll found most but not all countries had more confidence in Obama to do the right thing in global affairs. In several countries a majority of those polled said they were following the campaign closely, including Australia, Germany, Jordan, and the United Kingdom. [7]
A global non-scientific Internet vote conducted by The Economist , with 52,000 respondents, indicated that Obama was favored over McCain by a vast majority of poll respondents, with over 44,000 votes for Obama, or roughly 85% (there were no third party or abstain options). [8]
| Country | Candidates | YouGov/ Daily Telegraph May 27–29 [9] | Reader's Digest/ Synovate Omnibus June 2-July 7 [10] | BBC/ GlobeScan July 28-Aug 27 [3] | Gallup May-Oct [11] | Harris/ France24/IHT Oct 1-13 [1] | Various Oct [12] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Argentina | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 31% 6% | - | - |
 Armenia | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 43% 10% | - | - |
 Australia | Obama McCain | - | 76% 10% | 67% 13% | 64% 14% | - | - |
 Austria | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 58% 10% | - | - |
 Bangladesh | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 19% 8% | - | - |
 Belgium | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 64% 6% | - | 62% 8% |
 Benin | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 20% 2% | - | - |
 Bolivia | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 30% 8% | - | - |
 Botswana | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 62% 6% | - | - |
 Brazil | Obama McCain | - | 78% 11% | 51% 8% | - | - | - |
 Burkina Faso | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 50% 7% | - | - |
 Burundi | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 61% 8% | - | - |
 Cambodia | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 4% 9% | - | - |
 Cameroon | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 44% 7% | - | - |
 Canada | Obama McCain | - | 64% 14% | 66% 14% | 67% 22% | - | 70% 14% |
 Chile | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 43% 9% | - | - |
 China | Obama McCain | - | - | 35% 15% | 12% 5% | - | - |
 Colombia | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 38% 16% | - | - |
 Costa Rica | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 44% 9% | - | - |
 Denmark | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 69% 8% | - | - |
 Egypt | Obama McCain | - | - | 26% 13% | - | - | - |
 El Salvador | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 24% 14% | - | - |
 Estonia | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 22% 17% | - | - |
 Ethiopia | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 76% 6% | - | - |
 Finland | Obama McCain | - | 71% 13% | - | 54% 14% | - | - |
 France | Obama McCain | 65% 8% | 75% 10% | 69% 6% | 64% 4% | 78% 1% | 68% 5% |
 Georgia | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 15% 23% | - | - |
 Germany | Obama McCain | 67% 6% | 61% 26% | 65% 7% | 62% 10% | 72% 5% | - |
 Ghana | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 31% 13% | - | - |
 Guatemala | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 27% 11% | - | - |
 Honduras | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 27% 9% | - | - |
 India | Obama McCain | - | 85% 7% | 24% 15% | 7% 2% | - | - |
 Indonesia | Obama McCain | - | 67% 17% | 46% 11% | - | - | - |
 Ireland | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 67% 19% | - | - |
 Italy | Obama McCain | 70% 15% | - | 76% 12% | 56% 6% | 66% 12% | - |
 Japan | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 66% 15% | - | 61% 13% |
 Kenya | Obama McCain | - | - | 87% 5% | 89% 3% | - | - |
 Kuwait (nationals for Gallup) | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 32% 12% | - | - |
 Laos | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 24% 25% | - | - |
 Latvia | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 23% 15% | - | - |
 Lebanon | Obama McCain | - | - | 39% 27% | 45% 18% | - | - |
 Liberia | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 45% 27% | - | - |
 Lithuania | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 13% 13% | - | - |
 Madagascar | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 47% 28% | - | - |
 Mali | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 70% 16% | - | - |
 Mauritania | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 68% 3% | - | - |
 Mexico | Obama McCain | - | 70% 25% | 54% 16% | 27% 9% | - | 46% 13% |
 Netherlands | Obama McCain | - | 92% 8% | - | 74% 10% | - | - |
 Nicaragua | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 23% 7% | - | - |
 Nigeria | Obama McCain | - | - | 66% 11% | 23% 11% | - | - |
 Norway | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 71% 13% | - | - |
 Pakistan | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 5% 5% | - | - |
 Palestine | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 33% 11% | - | - |
 Panama | Obama McCain | - | - | 43% 15% | 35% 10% | - | - |
 Paraguay | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 26% 11% | - | - |
 Peru | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 31% 11% | - | - |
 Philippines | Obama McCain | - | - | 46% 22% | 20% 28% | - | - |
 Poland | Obama McCain | - | 65% 19% | 38% 13% | 43% 24% | - | 43% 26% |
 Russia | Obama McCain | 31% 24% | 52% 17% | 18% 7% | - | - | - |
 Rwanda | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 57% 12% | - | - |
 Saudi Arabia | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 50% 19% | - | - |
 Senegal | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 54% 15% | - | - |
 Sierra Leone | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 68% 18% | - | - |
 Singapore | Obama McCain | - | - | 29% 7% | 21% 11% | - | - |
 South Africa | Obama McCain | - | 70% 26% | - | - | - | - |
 South Korea | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 50% 24% | - | - |
 Spain | Obama McCain | - | 76% 13% | - | 49% 6% | 68% 8% | - |
 Sweden | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 64% 6% | - | - |
 Switzerland | Obama McCain | - | - | - | - | - | 83% 7% |
 Taiwan | Obama McCain | - | 81% 6% | - | - | - | - |
 Tanzania | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 76% 9% | - | - |
 Togo | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 38% 6% | - | - |
 Turkey | Obama McCain | - | - | 26% 11% | 22% 8% | - | - |
 UAE | Obama McCain | - | - | 46% 13% | - | - | - |
 Uganda | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 85% 8% | - | - |
 United Kingdom | Obama McCain | 49% 14% | 70% 14% | 59% 9% | 60% 15% | 48% 11% | 64% 15% |
 Uruguay | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 39% 7% | - | - |
 Zambia | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 47% 12% | - | - |
 Zimbabwe | Obama McCain | - | - | - | 41% 15% | - | - |
A poll taken on August 26 by Ibarómetro reported that 53.2% of those polled preferred Obama against 8.8% for McCain; 38% were unsure. [13]
Polls taken in Canada showed widespread and overwhelming support for Obama, even in traditionally conservative parts of the country.
A poll conducted on September 2–3 by TNS Sofres/Logica for the French-American Foundation and Fondation Robert Schuman found that 80% of the French polled hoped for an Obama victory, 8% for a McCain victory, 7% for neither, and 5% without an opinion. [14] A later poll done on October 10–11 by BVA for La Tribune found an even higher 86% who preferred to see Obama elected, with 6% hoping the same for McCain and 8% not expressing an opinion. [15]
The day after the election, a poll conducted by CSA for Le Parisien found that 84% of those polled were satisfied with the election of Obama, while 6% were dissatisfied and 10% expressed no opinion. [16]
During the Democratic primary campaign, 43% of Germans supported Obama and 39% supported challenger Senator Hillary Clinton according to a poll by Forsa for Stern . [17] In terms of the general election, a Forsa poll carried out on August 20–21 found 74% of respondents would vote for Obama, 11% for McCain, and 15% other or not sure. [2]
The Rabin Center for Israel Studies commissioned a poll by TNS Teleseker in the months before the election, which found that 46.4% of those polled supported McCain, 34% supported Obama, and 18.6% were undecided. [6]
A poll by the Palestinian Center for Public Opinion taken September 1–10 reported 33.5% of respondents favoring McCain, 27.7% Obama, 30.4% neither, and 8.3% unsure. [18]
The United States public's opinion on the invasion of Iraq has changed significantly since the years preceding the incursion. For various reasons, mostly related to the unexpected consequences of the invasion, as well as misinformation provided by US authorities, the US public's perspective on its government's choice to initiate an offensive is increasingly negative. Before the invasion in March 2003, polls showed 47–60% of the US public supported an invasion, dependent on U.N. approval. According to the same poll retaken in April 2007, 58% of the participants stated that the initial attack was a mistake. In May 2007, the New York Times and CBS News released similar results of a poll in which 61% of participants believed the U.S. "should have stayed out" of Iraq.
An opinion poll, often simply referred to as a survey or a poll, is a human research survey of public opinion from a particular sample. Opinion polls are usually designed to represent the opinions of a population by conducting a series of questions and then extrapolating generalities in ratio or within confidence intervals. A person who conducts polls is referred to as a pollster.
The 2008 United States presidential election was the 56th quadrennial presidential election, held on November 4, 2008. The Democratic ticket of Barack Obama, the junior senator from Illinois, and Joe Biden, the senior senator from Delaware, defeated the Republican ticket of John McCain, the senior senator from Arizona, and Sarah Palin, the governor of Alaska. Obama became the first African American to be elected to the presidency, as well as being only the third sitting United States senator elected president, joining Warren G. Harding and John F. Kennedy. Meanwhile, this was only the second successful all-senator ticket since the 1960 election and is the only election where both major party nominees were sitting senators. This was the first election since 1952 in which neither the incumbent president nor vice president was on the ballot, as well as the first election since 1928 in which neither ran for the nomination.
Gallup, Inc. is an American multinational analytics and advisory company based in Washington, D.C. Founded by George Gallup in 1935, the company became known for its public opinion polls conducted worldwide. Gallup provides analytics and management consulting to organizations globally. In addition the company offers educational consulting, the CliftonStrengths assessment and associated products, and business and management books published by its Gallup Press unit.
Public opinion of same-sex marriage in the United States has significantly changed since the 1990s, and an overwhelming majority of Americans now favor same-sex marriage.
Societal attitudes towards abortion have varied throughout different historical periods and cultures. One manner of assessing such attitudes in the modern era has been to conduct opinion polls to measure levels of public opinion on abortion.
The 2008 presidential campaign of John McCain, the longtime senior U.S. Senator from Arizona, was launched with an informal announcement on February 28, 2007, during a live taping of the Late Show with David Letterman, and formally launched at an event on April 25, 2007. His second candidacy for the Presidency of the United States, he had previously run for his party's nomination in the 2000 primaries and was considered as a potential running mate for his party's nominee, then-Governor George W. Bush of Texas. After winning a majority of delegates in the Republican primaries of 2008, on August 29, leading up to the convention, McCain selected Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska as his running mate for Vice President. Five days later, at the 2008 Republican National Convention, McCain was formally selected as the Republican Party presidential nominee in the 2008 presidential election.
United States President Barack Obama, a member of the Democratic Party, was endorsed or supported by some members of the Republican Party and by some political figures holding conservative views in the 2008 election. Although the vast majority of Obama's support came from liberal constituencies, some conservatives identified in him shared priorities or other positive attributes. As in any election, voters can and sometimes do cross party lines to vote for the other party's nominee. Republican and conservative Obama supporters were often referred to as "Obama Republicans", "Obamacans" or "Obamacons".
The 2008 presidential campaign of Tom Vilsack, former Iowa Governor began on November 30, 2006, the 2nd to officially announce a run. Vilsack had previously been considered as Vice Presidential candidate for Senator John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election. He ran for the Democratic Party's 2008 nomination for President of the United States.
Barack Obama, then junior United States senator from Illinois, announced his candidacy for president of the United States on February 10, 2007, in Springfield, Illinois. After winning a majority of delegates in the Democratic primaries of 2008, on August 23, leading up to the convention, the campaign announced that Senator Joe Biden of Delaware would be the vice presidential nominee. At the 2008 Democratic National Convention on August 27, Barack Obama was formally selected as the Democratic Party nominee for president of the United States in 2008. He was the first African American in history to be nominated on a major party ticket. On November 4, 2008, Obama defeated the Republican nominee, Senator John McCain of Arizona, making him the president-elect and the first African American elected president.
Senator John McCain, the Republican Party nominee, was endorsed or supported by some members of the Democratic Party and by some political figures holding liberal views in the 2008 United States presidential election. McCain Democrat and McCainocrat are terms applied to Democrats who supported McCain.
Barack Obama, who served as the 44th President of the United States, has elicited a number of public perceptions regarding his personality and background. As the first African-American President of the United States, his race and culture played a prominent role, both positively and negatively.
A 47-nation global survey of public opinion conducted in June 2007 by the Pew Global Attitudes Project found considerable opposition to the NATO military operations in Afghanistan. In 2 out of the 47 countries was there a majority that favoured keeping troops in Afghanistan – Israel (59%) and Kenya (60%). On the other hand, in 41 of the 47 countries pluralities wanted NATO troops out of Afghanistan as soon as possible. In 32 out of 47 countries majorities wanted NATO troops out of Afghanistan as soon as possible. Majorities in 7 out of 12 NATO member countries wanted troops withdrawn as soon as possible.
Allegations that Barack Obama secretly practices Islam, or that he is the antichrist of Christian eschatology, or covertly holds some other esoteric religious position, have been suggested since he campaigned for the U.S. Senate in 2004 and proliferated after his election as President of the United States in 2008. As with conspiracy theories surrounding his citizenship status, the claims are promoted by various political opponents, with American bloggers and conservative talk radio hosts particularly promoting the theories.
Public opinion on nuclear issues is the aggregate of attitudes or beliefs held by the adult population concerning nuclear power, nuclear weapons and uranium mining. Opinions vary very significantly across countries, and have significantly changed over time, with support declining mostly as result of widely publicized nuclear incidents, often presented in a distorted way, where the debate on climate change has boosted support for nuclear power as low-carbon energy source in many countries.
Gallup was the first polling organization to conduct accurate opinion polling for United States presidential elections. Gallup polling has often been accurate in predicting the outcome of presidential elections and the margin of victory for the winner. However, it missed some close elections: 1948, 1976 and 2004, the popular vote in 2000, and the likely-voter numbers in 2012. The month section in the tables represents the month in which the opinion poll was conducted. D represents the Democratic Party, and R represents the Republican Party. Third parties, such as the Dixiecrats and the Reform Party, were included in some polls.
The platform of the Democratic Party of the United States is generally based on modern liberalism, contrasting with the conservatism of the Republican Party. The party has large centrist and progressive wings, as well as smaller fiscal conservative and democratic socialist elements.
Public opinion on gun control in the United States has been tracked by numerous public opinion organizations and newspapers for more than 20 years. There have also been major gun policies that affected American opinion in the 1990s. Throughout these polling years, there are different gun control proposals that show promise for bipartisan action. Over the years listed there have been mass shootings, most notably school shootings, that have affected public opinion. There have also been a growth in states around the United States taking more drastic measures on gun control.
Voter segments in political polling in the United States consist of all adults, registered voters, and likely voters.
Following were the reaction to the Afghanistan War (2001–2021).