Global preferences regarding US presidential candidates

Given the degree to which the American president influences events all around the world, there is a certain degree of sense in polling the rest of the world to see which of the two current presidential candidates they prefer. This page on The Economist‘s website is doing just that. It is set up to mimic the American electoral college system, with each country getting three votes by default plus additional ones by population. In total, there are 9,875 votes.

At the time of writing, Canada’s 49 electoral college votes are going to Obama, who is preferred to McCain by 87% to 13%. The 432 American votes are also going to Obama, reflecting a 79% to 21% preference. The only countries that are toss ups or leaning towards McCain seem to be Macedonia (5 votes) and Andorra (3 votes). As such, Obama is leading by 8,360 to 8.

Of course, there are huge methodological problems with this type of survey. It is amalgamating the preferences of those who have volunteered to take it, and who therefore presumably have some knowledge of The Economist. It is neither a random nor a representative sample. Even so, the results are pretty striking.

Author: Milan

In the spring of 2005, I graduated from the University of British Columbia with a degree in International Relations and a general focus in the area of environmental politics. In the fall of 2005, I began reading for an M.Phil in IR at Wadham College, Oxford. Outside school, I am very interested in photography, writing, and the outdoors. I am writing this blog to keep in touch with friends and family around the world, provide a more personal view of graduate student life in Oxford, and pass on some lessons I've learned here. View all posts by Milan