Overview Four years after the recession officially ended, the economic recovery remains a long way off in the view of many Americans. A new survey by the Pew Research Center, conducted July 17-21 among 1,480 adults, finds that 44% say it will be a long time before the nation’s economy recovers. Smaller percentages say either […]
Japanese voters head to the polls elect members of the upper house of Japan’s national legislature, and the ballot is shaping up as a referendum on the seven-month tenure of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government.
Becoming caught up in a serious ethics scandal isn’t necessarily a career-ender for a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. It turns out only about a quarter exit the political stage through resignation or retirement. The rest choose to seek re-election despite the blot on their records—and two-thirds of them win. This scandal scorecard comes […]
Overview Publics around the world believe the global balance of power is shifting. China’s economic power is on the rise, and many think it will eventually supplant the United States as the world’s dominant superpower. However, China’s increasing power has not led to more positive ratings for the People’s Republic. Overall, the U.S. enjoys a […]
He was the only U.S. president never to have been elected president or vice president. Gerald Ford, who would have turned 100 this Sunday, is also remembered by the public as a leader who was neither the best nor worst—just very average.
Survey Report After more than two decades of economic turmoil and political transition in Japan, the public’s mood is showing some decided improvement. Japan now has a strongly popular political leadership, and there are indications of a growing Japanese aspiration to play a larger security role on the world stage. Public satisfaction with Japan’s direction […]
Political unrest continued in Egypt after a chaotic political week in which two of the key players – both unpopular with the Egyptian public – illustrated the difficulty in finding a leader who can overcome the country’s divisions.
At midyear, the national opinion polls provide little indication of which way the political wind is blowing looking ahead to 2014, and 2016. Most of the key public opinion measures are mixed, or uncertain.
Public views of Barack Obama today are very different from those of George W. Bush at about this point in his second term. Obama’s job rating is in positive territory, while Bush’s tilted negative. But a look at the one-word descriptions of the two men finds some common ground. Most notably, the word incompetent appears high on the one-word list for each.
America’s struggles with race and racism are never completely out of the news. But it is hard to remember when a series of stories have given this issue such resonance, whether in the rulings of the Supreme Court on affirmative action and voting rights, a tense trial in a Florida courtroom and even the racially insensitive comments of a celebrity chef.