American Public Rallies Behind Ukraine - Horowitz

Americans are paying close attention to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, have formed strongly positive impressions of Ukraine and its leaders, express overwhelmingly negative feelings about Vladimir Putin, and back the Biden actions on Ukraine. These are among the findings of a series of public opinion polls taken since the invasion began less than 3 weeks ago.

More than 8-in-10 Americans are following the “news of the invasion very much or moderately,” according to a NewsNation/Decision Desk HQ poll. Only, 14% of Americans say they are not “following news of the invasion closely.”

This attention to the saturation level news coverage of the invasion, which across the cable and broadcast news channels is painting a similar picture of courageous Ukrainians defending their nation and holding off the far greater and better equipped Russian forces, is driving a surge in favorable impressions of a nation that the majority of Americans knew little about before the invasion. As Nate Cohn of The New York Times points out, more than 8-in-10 Americans now view Ukraine as either an ally or a friendly nation, while a year ago 1-in-3 Americans couldn’t say whether Ukraine was “friendly or unfriendly" and 2 years ago, only 41% of Americans “called Ukraine either friendly or an ally."

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Similarly, the American public’s opinion of President Zelensky has grown markedly more favorable. Zelensky’s favorable rating increased by 15% in the first week of the invasion alone, increasing from 29% to 44%, according to an Economist/YouGov poll. His unfavorable rating dropped from 19% to 16% over the same time period. It is a safe bet that by now he is viewed favorably by well over 50% of Americans.

In contrast, “3-out-of- 4 of Americans view Vladimir Putin unfavorably,” a slight uptick from the month before, according to an Economist/You.Gov Poll. “Two-thirds of Americans call praise of Putin by U.S. leaders “inappropriate.” That includes 77% of Democrats, 64% of Republicans, and 59% of voters for Donald Trump.” 

Consistent with Americans' perceptions of the invasion in Ukraine, the overwhelming majority back the actions of the Biden Administration. This support cuts across all demographic groups and bridges the usual partisan divides.  Eighty percent of respondents in a new Reuters/Ipsos poll, for example, say “Americans should not buy oil or gas from Russia during the conflict even if it causes gasoline prices to increase.”

Along the same lines, at least 7-in-10 Americans support tough sanctions on Russia, back sending military aid to Ukraine, and are in favor of an American military response, if Russia invades a NATO country. These results can be seen across a series of recent national polls. A substantial majority of Americans also support the Biden Administration's position of ruling out the use of American or other NATO nations' troops in directly defending Ukraine.

While it is the case that the ability for presidents and administrations to shape opinion is usually greater in foreign policy where Americans have less knowledge and consequently opinions are less fixed, the level of consensus about Ukraine, given the persistent partisan polarization and partisan niche media structure that characterize today’s politics is still remarkable and reassuring.  

One major element is that the usual divides in media coverage between conservative-leaning Fox and other conservative outlets and liberal-leaning MSNBC and CNN are muted. The news coverage by the brave reporters onsite in Ukraine is similar and at least for now because of its power is not being overwhelmed by the partisan punditry.  

This coverage makes the brutal reality of Russia’s invasion and its cost in human lives and destruction facts that all but the fiercest ideologues can’t ignore. 

There is no guarantee, of course, that as this conflict proceeds and the sacrifices that we Americans are asked to make, including paying more at the pump, continue and perhaps increase, that this level of support for our actions in Ukraine will stay in place. For now, however, let us at least take some comfort in the fact that Americans have come together to stand up for the brave Ukrainians, for democracy, and for a rule-based world order where countries can’t invade and brutalize other nations simply because they have the power to do so.

Rob Horowitz is a strategic and communications consultant who provides general consulting, public relations, direct mail services and polling for national and state issue organizations, various non-profits, businesses, and elected officials and candidates. He is an Adjunct Professor of Political Science at the University of Rhode Island.

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