Majority of Brits think Trump Re-Election Could Hurt Special Relationship

Poll finds that 49% of British people feel the re-election of Donald Trump as US President could negatively impact the UK’s relationship with America

With the US Presidential Election just weeks away, a survey published yesterday (October 19) by Ipsos MORI has found that almost half of Britons feel that the Special Relationship between the US and the UK could be damaged if Donald Trump is elected to run a second term as President.

The results show that 49% of Britons feel a Trump re-election would "have a negative impact" on the UK's relationship with the US, while 16% said the outcome would be positive for the UK. In contrast, 43% of respondents said a Joe Biden presidency would be positive for the Special Relationship, while 17% said a Biden win would be less favourable for Britain.

When asked who would give the UK a better trade deal, one in five (20%) of respondents said the UK is more likely to get a good deal with Joe Biden in the White House, while 16% said the same if Trump remains as President. 26% of Britons said there would be no good deal irrespective of the White House's occupant, while 17% said they believed the UK would get a good trade deal with the US regardless of the outcome of the November election.

Responding to the survey, which also looked at other views on the US from this side of the pond, Keiran Pedley, Research Director at Ipsos MORI, said that "Our research has consistently shown that Britons have an unfavourable view towards Donald Trump, and this latest data confirms that they think the so-called special relationship would be best served by Joe Biden as President (although Conservative and Leave voters are more divided). Having said that, Britons are much less certain that their preferred option will actually win in November. And thinking about the realities of trade negotiations, many Britons believe it won’t actually make much difference who the President is when it comes to the UK’s chances of signing a trade deal with the US, for good or bad."

For the full survey results, go to www.ipsos.com/ipsos-mori/en-uk/half-britons-believe-trumps-re-election-would-negatively-impact-uks-special-relationship

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