USA: Several polls in America show large numbers of citizens consider the US status as a world power is declining

Nearly half of Americans (47%) say that the United States’ influence in the world has been getting weaker in recent years. Only about one-in-five say U.S. influence has been getting stronger, while 32% say U.S. influence has been staying about the same.

This is in stark contrast with views of China: Two-thirds of U.S. adults say that the country’s influence has been getting stronger in recent years. Roughly one-in-five Americans say China’s global influence is holding steady, and only one-in-ten say China’s influence has been weakening.

Read more at: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2022/06/23/prevailing-view-among-americans-is-that-u-s-influence-in-the-world-is-weakening-and-chinas-is-growing/

Turkey: Erdogans reelection as President of Turkey not certain

If civil servants in Ankara are an accurate barometer of shifting fronts in Turkey’s national politics, then the country’s longest serving leader, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, really could be in trouble in May’s election.

The main opposition, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), says bureaucrats are already sending in their resumes in preparation for a new order, sensing that this could be the end of Erdoğan’s more-than-two-decade dominance over the state.

That would be a relief to many in the West, who are increasingly frustrated by the Islamist populist’s confrontational statesmanship in a strategic heavyweight of 85 million people. In the past months alone, Turkey has quietly provided Russia with clandestine trade routes to beat sanctions, imposed a veto on Sweden’s entry into NATO and engaged Greece in high-risk brinkmanship with fighter jets over the Aegean.

Read more at: https://www.politico.eu/article/turkey-2023-election-erdogan-close-call-republican-peoples-party-turkey-sweden-akp-chp-kilicdaroglu-fahrettin-altun/

French election: Macron leads Le Pen, but warns ′nothing is decided′

French voters are more likely to support incumbent President Emmanuel Macron than challenger Marine Le Pen in the second round of the presidential vote next weekend, according to a new poll published on Saturday.
An Ipsos-Sopra Steria survey found that Macron enjoys support of around 55.5% of the respondents. Marine Le Pen could count on 44.5% of the vote, with the voter turnout expected to be 72% in the runoff. The French researchers put the margin of error between 0.7 and 2.4 percentage points.

Read more at: French election: Macron leads Le Pen, but warns ′nothing is decided′ | News | DW | 16.04.2022

France election: Macron targets Le Pen's 'indulgence' of Putin as hard right rival closes gap

The two leading candidates in Sunday's French presidential election will appear on TV on Wednesday night in a key moment in the campaign, as Marine Le Pen continues to close the gap on Emmanuel Macron according to the latest polling. IFOP's survey updated on Tuesday evening on first-round voting intentions shows Macron on 27%, down by 0.5%, while his rival from the hard-right gains one percentage point to reach 23%, four points behind.

Another poll on Tuesday night, by Kantar-Epoka, puts Le Pen (23%) just two points behind Macron (25%), a fall of four percentage points for the current president in two weeks.

Read more at: France election: Macron targets Le Pen's 'indulgence' of Putin as hard right rival closes gap | Euronews

USA: Generic Congressional Ballot - Democrats in deep trouble

The 2022 midterm elections are now 263 days away, and Republicans have a 13-point lead in their bid to recapture control of Congress.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that, if the elections for Congress were held today, 50% of Likely U.S. Voters would vote for the Republican candidate, while 37% would vote for the Democrat. Just four percent (4%) would vote for some other candidate, but another nine percent (9%) are not sure.

Read more at: https://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/mood_of_america/generic_congressional_ballot_feb18?utm_campaign=RR02202022DN&utm_source=criticalimpact&utm_medium=email

Canada - US relations: 59% of U.S. Voters Support Canadian Truckers in ‘Freedom Convoy’ Protest - Majority of Canadians don't

Canada’s prime minister has invoked emergency powers in an attempt to shut down a protest by truckers seeking an end to COVID-19 restrictions, but most American voters support the so-called “Freedom Convoy” – and think a similar protest here would be a good idea.

A new national telephone and online survey by Rasmussen Reports finds that 59% of Likely U.S. voters support the Canadian trucker protest, including 42% who Strongly Support the “Freedom Convoy.” Thirty-three percent (33%) of voters oppose the trucker protest against Canada’s COVID-19 restrictions, including 21% who Strongly Oppose the protest.

Note EU-Digest: n fact, poll after poll -- including the very poll Ungar-Sargon was referencing -- has shown that most Canadians oppose the protests and support both vaccination mandates and various restrictions intended to limit the spread of the virus. The polling figures suggest it is Fox's cheerleading for the protests that is out of touch with the views of a significant majority of the Canadian public.

Read more at: 59% of U.S. Voters Support Canadian Truckers in ‘Freedom Convoy’ Protest - Rasmussen Reports®

USA: Joe Biden's Winter of Discontent—Failed Bills, Terrible Polls and Now Omicron

President Joe Biden is facing his first holiday season as commander in chief while confronting a slew of problems from the new variant of COVID-19 to stalled legislation and his own unpopularity.

The president could be bracing for a winter of discontent as the Omicron variant is expected to surge and efforts to pass the $1.75 trillion Build Back Better Act flounder due to opposition from Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV).

He may also have to sacrifice the enhanced child tax credit in the new year as part of a deal to pass Build Back Better—a key achievement that could further damage his standing with voters if it's not extended.

Read more at: Joe Biden's Winter of Discontent—Failed Bills, Terrible Polls and Now Omicron

'Brazil: Everybody has to buy a rifle, damn it!' Brazilian President Bolsonaro tells his supporters

Armed people will never be enslaved, Brazil’s president, Jair Bolsonaro, who is trailing in polls for the 2022 election, told a crowd of his supporters in the capital Brasilia, urging everyone to get a rifle as soon as possible.

Bolsonaro’s ratings have crumbled amid the Covid-19 pandemic, which has seen Brazil become one of the world’s worst-affected countries with almost 21 million infections and more than 578,000 deaths. A recent poll by XP/Ipespe revealed that only 24% of those surveyed plan to vote for the 66-year-old when he runs for reelection next year, while his leftist opponent, former president Luiz Inacio Lula. da Silva, received the support of some 40%.

Read more at: 'Everybody has to buy a rifle, damn it!' Brazilian President Bolsonaro tells his supporters

Mail In Voting: Most Say Mail-In Voting Worked, But 47% Say Fraud Likely

Most voters say this year’s unprecedented level of mail-in voting was largely successful and continue to think President Trump should concede the presidential race. Republicans, however, strongly believe Democrats are likely to have stolen the election.

Reads more at: Most Say Mail-In Voting Worked, But 47% Say Fraud Likely - Rasmussen Reports®

Coronavirus: Most See Lockdown, Masks For At Least Another Six Months

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 41% of American Adults believe an anti-coronavirus lockdown will be needed for less than six additional months. But 36% say a lockdown will be necessary for six months to a year more. Seventeen percent (17%) think it will be even longer, although that includes only three percent (3%) who say it will need to last indefinitely. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Read more at: Most See Lockdown, Masks For At Least Another Six Months - Rasmussen Reports®

USA: 2020 presidential election polls today: Biden’s lead over Trump stays steady - by Dylan Scott

With millions of votes already cast and just three weeks until Election Day, President Donald Trump does not appear to be making up ground in his reelection race against Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

An ABC News/Washington Post national poll released Sunday found Biden leading Trump with likely voters by 12 percentage points, 54 percent to 42 percent, with the Libertarian and Green Party candidates together attracting just 3 percent of likely voters. The poll was conducted entirely after Trump’s October 5 discharge from Walter Reed Medical Center, where he was treated for Covid-19. It shows Biden doubling his lead from the last ABC/Post poll, which found Biden up 6 percentage points in late September.

These days, a 12 percentage point national lead for Biden is largely in line with overall polling averages. FiveThirtyEight gives the Democratic candidate a 10.4 percentage point average lead, while Real Clear Politics puts Biden’s average lead at 9.8 percentage points.

Read more at: 2020 presidential election polls today: Biden’s lead over Trump stays steady - Vox

USA - Big Tech: Breaking up big tech companies like Amazon and Google is really popular, poll shows

Americans are pretty on board with breaking up Big Tech, especially if it means companies such as Amazon and Google stop showing them search results they make money off of first.

Nearly two-thirds of Americans would support breaking up tech firms by undoing recent mergers, such as Facebook’s acquisition of Instagram, if it means ensuring more competition in the future.

Read more at: Breaking up big tech companies like Amazon and Google is really popular, poll shows - Vox

US Presidential Elections: What the Polls Say About Joe Biden Versus Donald Trump's Hispanic Support

Hspanic voters will play a major role in the 2020 election, and right now it looks like former Vice President Joe Biden has more support from the group than President Donald Trump.

 November will be the first time Hispanics are the largest minority group in the electorate, according to an analysis of federal data by the Pew Research Center. A record 32 million Latinos are projected to be eligible to vote this year.

The latest national survey from The Economist/You Gov found that Biden had slightly more support from Hispanic voters. Forty-four percent of those polled said they would vote for the former vice president compared with 40 percent who said they'd back Trump. The poll was conducted from April 12 to April 14 and surveyed 1,166 registered voters.

Biden also has an advantage over Trump when it comes to favorability among Hispanic voters, according to a new survey from Morning Consult/Politico released Wednesday morning. The poll surveyed nearly 2,000 registered voters and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.

More than half of Hispanic voters polled (54 percent) said they had an unfavorable view of Trump compared with 32 percent who had a favorable view. When it came to Biden, 44 percent of Hispanic respondents had a favorable view of the former vice president while 34 percent had an unfavorable view.

Biden is also polling better among Hispanic voters in a handful of key 2020 swing states, such as Florida and Arizona.

In the Sunshine State, Biden had a 20-point lead over Trump among Hispanic voters. A survey conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy for the Telemundo Station Group in early March found that 58 percent of Hispanic voters would back Biden compared with 38 percent who would support Trump's re-election.

Read What the Polls Say About Joe Biden Versus Donald Trump's Hispanic Support

USA:`Trump is more popular than ever, but there's more to the story

 Donald Trump is enjoying his best poll numbers ever. His opponents may fume in frustration, but the public gives the U.S. president decent marks for his handling of the COVID-19 crisis. Here are four takeaways on what those poll numbers say, what they don't, and what's next.

Read more at:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/trump-popularity-spike-1.5512983

USA: - Donald Trump's Poor Presidential skills and lies score well with Republican voters in America as Trump approval rating wih them highest since early 2017

President Trump’s job approval rating has soared to new heights since the coronavirus outbreak began.

A new Pew Research Center survey found Mr. Trump’s approval rating scored its highest marks since March 2017. Mr. Trump’s approval rating has risen 5 percentage points since January, to 45%, while 52% of Americans disapprove of his job performance.

“Trump’s approval rating has improved among both Republicans and Democrats,” according to the Pew Research Center. “Among Republicans and Republican learners, 85% now approve of Trump’s job performance, compared with 80% in January.

Among Democrats and Democratic learners, the share approving increased from 7% to 12% over the same period.”

Read more at: Trump approval rating highest since early 2017: Pew poll - Washington Times

USA: President Trump-to impeach or not? -How support for impeachment is rising among Americans — in one chart

How support for impeachment is rising among Americans — in one chart -

Read more at:
https://on.mktw.net/2nd7g0K

EU-Elections: Day one of voting is over as polls close in the Netherlands and Britain

Exit Polls show that in the Netherlands Dutch Labor Party is the big winner in the elections and Ultra-Right-wing populists of the Baudet and Wilders groupings did not do as well as expected

In Britain the two main parties, however - Labour and Conservative - seemed to be preparing for the worst, possibly facing a backlash over their handling of Brexit. 

Read more at:
https://www.euronews.com/2019/05/23/britain-and-netherlands-kick-off-eu-elections-votes

EU parliamentary elections: Polls show losses for major parties

EU election poll: Waiting game as popular parties yet to align with Parliament groups

Read more at:

 https://www.euronews.com/2019/05/02/eu-election-poll-waiting-game-as-popular-parties-yet-to-align-with-parliament-groups

USA Polls: US a more divided nation than ever says recent poll

Read more at:
http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/general_politics/january_2019/more_voters_see_a_divided_nation_blame_trump

Britain - Brexit: Theresa May should start reading the Tea Leaves as 2.6 million Leave voters have abandoned support for Brexit since referendum, major new study finds - by Benjamin Kentish

The Brexit disaster

More than 2.6 million people have abandoned their support for Brexit and now back staying in the EU, a major study has concluded.

If the huge number of Britons who have changed their mind had voted to stay in the EU in 2016, the referendum would have delivered a clear Remain verdict.

The data will add to the debate about whether the country now needs a new referendum, with millions having second thoughts about their Leave vote amid growing fears about Britain crashing out of the EU without a deal.

In a key finding that will particularly intensify pressure on Jeremy Corbyn to take a tougher stance against Brexit, the study found the overwhelming majority of those changing minds are Labour voters in seats the party currently holds.

It comes as Conservative divisions over Brexit deepened, with Theresa May attempting to slap down Boris Johnson after he wrote another article attacking her approach.

The Independent has launched its own campaign for a Final Say referendum, with almost three quarters of a million people having signed our petition demanding one so far.

Read more: 2.6 million Leave voters have abandoned support for Brexit since referendum, major new study finds | The Independent