Europeans Say Trump’s Reelection Matters More Than Their Own Elections, New Poll Finds

The Politico/Public First survey captures heightened attention to Washington during a tense phase in transatlantic relations.

Overview

Major shares of respondents said President Donald Trump’s return was more consequential for their countries than recent national votes: 54% in the UK, 53% in Germany and 43% in France.
The online survey, conducted December 5–9 among about 10,510 adults, reported an estimated margin of error of roughly ±2 percentage points.
In France, only 11% said EU leaders handled relations with Trump well, while 47% said Brussels handled the relationship poorly.
Framing the comparison to domestic politics, many Germans and Britons rated Trump’s election as more significant than a hypothetical election of Friedrich Merz as chancellor or Keir Starmer’s rise with Labour, with a similar pattern reported in France versus national leadership.
On leadership traits, respondents in Germany (74% vs 26%), France (73% vs 27%) and the UK (69% vs 31%) more often called Trump strong and decisive than their own leaders, though he scored lower than them on honesty and transparency.