Steady 66% Want Leading or Major World Role for U.S.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Sixty-six percent of Americans want the U.S. to take either the leading role (19%) or a major role (47%) in trying to solve international problems. That combined percentage remains lower than Gallup readings between 2001 and 2009, which averaged 75%, and is essentially tied with 2023 (65%) and 2011 (66%) as the low in the trend.

Twenty-eight percent of Americans say the U.S. should take a minor role in world affairs, and 3% say it should have no role at all. Over time, most of the shifts in opinion have come in the shares of U.S. adults favoring a major versus a minor role. Compared with the 2001-2009 averages, the current percentage of Americans wanting the U.S. to take a major role is down seven percentage points, while the percentage favoring a minor role is up nine points.

These results are based on Gallup’s annual World Affairs poll, conducted Feb. 3-16. The poll was taken amid ongoing U.S. involvement in attempts to end the Israel-Hamas and Russia-Ukraine wars. Interviewing was completed before the heated Feb. 28 White House meeting between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Republicans (71%) and Democrats (75%) are about equally likely to say the U.S. should take a leading or major role in solving international problems, though more Republicans (28%) than Democrats (20%) favor a minor role. Political independents (58%) are less inclined than Republicans and Democrats to want to see the U.S. take a leading or major role.

Over time, independents and Republicans have become less likely to favor a major or leading role for the U.S. Between 2001 and 2009, an average of 83% of Republicans, 70% of independents and 72% of Democrats favored a leading or major role for the U.S. in world affairs. Thus, the current figures represent 12-point declines for both Republicans and independents from the earlier period. The Republican decline would be even steeper if not for a significant increase this year, under Trump, compared with 2023, under Democratic President Joe Biden.

Americans View U.S. as No. 1 Military, but Not Top Economy

The U.S. is well-positioned to be a leader in world affairs given its status as having the largest economy, by gross domestic product, and having a larger military budget than any other country. Americans are more likely to perceive the U.S. as having the No. 1 military in the world (56%) than having the No. 1 economy (26%). In contrast, 43% of Americans say the U.S. is only one of several leading military powers, and 72% say it is one of several leading economic powers.

Perceptions of the U.S. as the dominant military and economy are about mid-range compared with past measures dating back to 1993. The high points for perceptions of having the No. 1 military were 63% in 1993 and 64% in 2010; the highs for views of having the top economy were 40% in 1999 and 39% in 2000, during the dot-com boom.

When asked whether it is important for the U.S. to be No. 1 in these areas, 66% of Americans say it is important for the U.S. to have the top military, while 49% say the same about the economy. Since Gallup first asked these questions in 1993, between 59% and 70% have said it’s important for the U.S. to be No. 1 militarily, and 39% to 50% have said the same about the economy.

Perceptions of the U.S. as the No. 1 military power are generally similar by political party: 60% of Republicans, 56% of Democrats and 53% of independents hold this view. However, Republicans (34%) are more likely than independents (25%) and Democrats (21%) to say the U.S. has the No. 1 economy. That is a change from the last measure in 2022, under Biden, when there were no meaningful partisan differences. Republicans tend to be more inclined to say the U.S. has the top economy when Republican presidents are in office.

Republicans are more likely than independents and Democrats to say it is important for the U.S. to be No. 1 militarily and economically, as has been the case historically.

• Eighty-nine percent of Republicans say it is important for the U.S. to have the strongest military, compared with 63% of independents and 48% of Democrats.
• With respect to the economy, 71% of Republicans see the U.S. being No. 1 as important, compared with 47% of independents and 29% of Democrats.

When asked for their perceptions of current U.S. military strength, 14% of Americans say the military is stronger than it needs to be, 43% say it is not strong enough, and 40% say it is about right. Those figures are similar to what they have been since 2022 -- but between 2018 and 2021, more Americans said national defense was “about right,” including 62% in 2020, the highest since 1990.

Continued Dissatisfaction With U.S. Position in World

The poll finds that 39% of Americans are satisfied and 59% dissatisfied with the United States’ position in the world today. Dating back to the Vietnam era, it has been rare for a majority of Americans to say they are satisfied. The exceptions occurred in the early 2000s -- amid the economic boom, the 9/11 terror attacks and the start of the Iraq War -- and in 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic struck the U.S. The low point of 30% satisfied occurred in 2008, amid the Great Recession and prolonged wars with Iraq and Afghanistan.

Satisfaction with the United States’ position in the world tends to be heavily influenced by the president’s political party. With Trump in office, 65% of Republicans are satisfied, compared with 14% of Democrats and 38% of independents. Last year, with Biden as president, 8% of Republicans, 60% of Democrats and 32% of independents were satisfied.

Both Republicans and Democrats are more likely to express satisfaction with the United States’ position in the world when a president of their party is in power. However, Republicans’ satisfaction under GOP presidents (2001 through 2008 and 2017 through 2020) has exceeded Democratic satisfaction under Democratic presidents (2009 through 2016 and 2021 through 2024).

Before the heated Trump-Zelenskyy meeting, the poll also found:

• Forty-four percent of U.S. adults believed leaders of other countries respect Trump. That is higher than the ratings from his first term, when between 29% and 37% held that view, which were among the lowest Gallup has measured for recent presidents.
• Similarly, 45% believed the U.S. is viewed favorably in the eyes of the world, while 54% said it is viewed unfavorably. This ranks in the lower range of the trend that began in 2000, with the low point being 40% in June 2007, along with similar 42% ratings in 2017 and 2024.

Bottom Line

At a time when major conflicts challenge the global community, a reduced but still solid majority of Americans believe the U.S. should take the leading role or a major role in trying to solve international problems. The Trump administration has made finding solutions to the Israel-Hamas and Russia-Ukraine wars focus points of its early work. Peace in both conflicts remains elusive, as the joint U.S.-Ukraine White House meeting last week made clear.

Americans continue to express dissatisfaction with the United States’ position in the world, as has been the case in most Gallup measurements dating back to the 1960s, through Republican and Democratic presidential administrations. Americans’ tendency to be dissatisfied with the nation’s position could be related to their doubts about how the U.S. compares with other countries economically and militarily, when the U.S. is arguably the leading power in both domains.

Solid U.S. economies, such as in the early 2000s and immediately before the COVID-19 pandemic, and international crises involving the U.S., like 9/11 and the start of the Iraq War, sparked brief periods when majorities of Americans were satisfied with the nation’s international standing.

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