Americans Show Democratic Sympathies Toward Protesters in Egypt
February 7th, 2011Americans View Political Changes Good for Egypt and the US
ANALYSIS
by Glynn Wilson
The vast majority of Americans support the Egyptian protesters calling for a change in leadership there, with 82 percent reporting sympathy with the vocal opposition and 42 percent who say they are “very sympathetic.” Only 11 percent stand unsympathetic, according to the latest Gallup Poll on the subject.
“While the ratio of sympathetic to unsympathetic attitudes is larger among those who are following the situation closely than among those not following it closely, the differences largely disappear when those with no opinion are taken into account,” according to Gallup’s analysis. The polling company says 69 percent of Americans have been following the news about the political crisis and demonstrations in Egypt, either very or somewhat closely, at least.
“This puts the Egyptian situation in the top half of all news stories Gallup has measured using this question format since 1991, slightly above the median of 60 percent,” Gallup reports.
Two-thirds of Americans, 66 percent, say the political changes in Egypt will be mostly good for that country, while 60 percent say the changes will be mostly good for the U.S., although that is not a sure thing from a Washington point of view.
Democrats are more likely than independents or Republicans to say they are sympathetic to the Egyptian protesters, according to Gallup, and are also more likely to say the developments in Egypt are mostly good for both the country of Egypt and the U.S.
“But overall, regardless of partisan orientation,” according to Gallup at least, “majorities of all party groups are sympathetic to the protesters and view the changes to the Egyptian government positively.”
Implications
The Obama administration has so far reacted cautiously to the developments in Egypt, by all accounts attempting to support the idea of democratic reforms without appearing to interfere too much in the ultimate fate of the Egyptian government, according to Gallup.
“The administration, diplomats, commentators, and other observers also continue to debate the ultimate ramifications of the changes in Egypt for combating terrorism, maintaining stability in the Middle East, and protecting the supply of oil to the U.S.,” their analyst says, “but the potential risks related to the likely change in government in Egypt do not appear to be prominent in Americans’ minds.”
To me, it shows they are not politically savvy as an amalgam of public opinion, but at least it shows they have deep democratic tendencies that are still alive. If only they knew how to focus and employ them at home?
Survey Methods
Results for this Gallup poll are based on telephone interviews conducted Feb. 2-5, with a random sample of 1,015 national adults, aged 18 and older, living in the continental U.S., selected using random-digit-dial sampling. For results based on the total sample of national adults, one can say with 95 percent confidence that the maximum margin of sampling error is plus or minus percentage points.
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Tags: Americans Show Democratic Sympathies Toward the Protesters in Egypt, Gallup Poll
February 8th, 2011 at 9:23 am
In the short and long run, what matters is that changes be positive for the people of Egypt. They have lived under authoritarian autocrats since the British left in the early 1950s and it is time for democratic reforms.