Pope Leo XIV tops a new Gallup poll on world leaders, appealing to United States residents broadly in a politically divided – and divisive – nation. Source: NCR Online.
The poll found that 57 per cent of respondents viewed Pope Leo favourably, with 11 per cent disapproving of him and 31 per cent having no opinion.
Respondents gave Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a 52 per cent approval rating, with 34 per cent disapproving and 14 per cent indicating no opinion.
Of Americans surveyed, 41 per cent approved of US President Donald Trump, with 57 per cent disapproving and 2 per cent having no opinion. US Vice President JD Vance scored a 49 per cent disapproval rating, with 38 per cent viewing him favourably and 13 per cent having no opinion.
Of the 31 per cent of respondents who had no opinion of Leo,18 per cent said they were not familiar enough with the Pope to weigh in, while the remaining 13 per cent had not heard of him.
In addition, Leo is viewed more favourably across party lines, “unlike the political figures measured in the latest poll”.
Gallup noted that “consistent with the ideological differences in his ratings, he is liked better by Democrats than Republicans.”
The Gallup poll, conducted by telephone on July 7-21 with 1002 adults throughout the US, was the first time it rated the US-born pope since his May 8 election. Pope Leo marks his first 100 days in the papacy August 16.
Gallup also compared Pope Leo’s rating with those of Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI. It noted the new pope’s numbers “closely match” those of his predecessors in the early days of their respective pontificates. In 2013, Gallup found that 58 per cent approved and 10 per cent disapproved of Pope Francis, while in 2005 Pope Benedict was viewed favourably by 55 per cent and unfavourably by 12 per cent.
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Pope Leo tops Trump and Zelenskyy in Gallup world leader poll (By Gina Christian, OSV News via NCR Online)
