Twenty-two per cent of Australians would prefer Donald Trump over Kamala Harris as the next President of the United States.
Let that sink in for a moment.
Thirty per cent of Australian men would prefer Trump over Harris, along with 14 per cent of Australian women.
However, that result – which suggests almost one in four Australians support the return of Trump – is an improvement for the Democrats, marking a positive shift in support from Australians after Harris replaced Joe Biden as the party’s presidential candidate.
That’s according to the latest Lowy Institute poll out today, which was compared with a poll six months ago, and found that almost one in three Australians (29 per cent) would prefer Trump over Biden.
The Lowy Institute describes the decline in support for Trump from Australians as “substantial” over the past six months, given the drop. Director of the Institute’s Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program, Ryan Neelam says there has been a “clear change in the trajectory of Australians’ attitudes towards the candidates of the two parties.”
Harris has gained five points, while Trump has lost seven points since March 2024.
Trump is and remains the most popular Republican presidential nominee for Australians in the history of the Lowy Institute poll, enjoying above-average support from the Coalition and One Nation supporters. He is more popular than previous and more moderate nominees, including Mitt Romney and John McCain.
And yes, there was a significant gender difference in Australians’ support for Trump, reflecting the gender divide in polling in the United States also.
On key issues, 81 per cent of Australians think that Harris would do a better job on global efforts to address climate change, and 75 per cent believe she would be better for the United States’ global reputation. Seventy-two per cent of Australians think Harris would be better than Trump when it comes to Australia’s security. The support drops to 68 per cent on the global economy.
Based on a survey of 2028 adults across Australia and conducted by the Social Research Centre between the 2nd and 16th September. The debate between the two presidential candidates was held on the 10th of September US time (11th in Australia), giving Australians one of the first opportunities to learn more about Harris’ platform.