A plurality of voters, 48 percent, say the have a more negative view on China due to the coronavirus pandemic, a new Hill-HarrisX poll finds.
Thirty-seven percent say the crisis has had no effect on their opinion on China, the location of the first known case of the outbreak took place.
Fifteen percent of registered voters in the May 6 survey said they have a more positive view of China due to COVID-19.
Republican voters are more likely to have grown negative towards China due to the outbreak.
Sixty-two percent say they have a more negative view compared to 36 percent of Democrats and 49 percent of independents.
“Narratives sort of blaming or pointing at China are going to find it easier to take route,” Chris Jackson, Vice President of Ipsos, told Hill.TV.
“The President, former Vice President Joe Biden, anyone else sort of coming up with a story for why this is sort of the fault of the Chinese government or other actors, are going to find it easier to tell those stories because people are already a little bit inclined to distrust what’s happening because they already view China as somehow responsible for the start of this pandemic,” he added.
The Hill-HarrisX poll was conducted online among 957 registered voters on May 6. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.17 percentage points.
—Gabriela Schulte
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