The United States and the United Kingdom received the lowest confidence scores among the G7, according to new research.
Gallup found that when survey respondents were asked whether had confidence in each country, just 31 percent said they had confidence in the U.S., and 33 percent said they had confidence in the U.K. Germany and Canada topped the list with the highest percentages of those saying they have confidence his the country, with 61 percent saying they have confidence in Germany while 51 percent said they had confidence in Canada.
Those were the only two countries a majority of respondents had confidence in; 46 percent said they had confidence in France, 43 percent for Japan and 41 percent for Italy.
The U.S. and the U.K. both dropping to the lowest votes of confidence among the G7 countries stands in stark contrast to when Gallup first began measuring confidence levels two decades ago. In 2002, the U.S. and the U.K. had the highest levels of confidence at 56 percent and 49 percent, respectively.
Gallup noted that the U.S.’s trend of dropping confidence is on track with recent years and added that in 2020, 46 percent of U.S. adults had confidence in the government. Once President Biden took office, Gallup noted that confidence levels dropped to 41 percent in 2021 and now 31 percent in 2022.
Other lows of U.S. confidence occurred in 2013 and 2016 under former President Obama at 29 percent and 30 percent, respectively, and in 2018 under former President Trump at 31 percent.
Gallup added that turbulent years at Westminster, including Brexit and high turnover rates in prime ministers, may be the source of the Britons’ low confidence levels in the U.K. The poll noted that confidence levels are correlated with leadership approval ratings, showing that 46 percent approve of U.K. leadership in 2022 as 33 percent express confidence in the country.
From 2021 to 2022, confidence in the U.K. among those who approve of its government dropped dramatically from 61 percent to 38 percent, according to Gallup.