Many Americans would pick Trudeau over Trump if given the chance amid COVID-19: poll

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Many Americans believe our prime minister is doing a better job than their president in handling the COVID-19 pandemic — and they apparently want to trade.

That’s according to a new survey by Leger and the Association for Canadian Studies, which has found 40 per cent of Americans polled say Justin Trudeau is doing a better job of handling the health crisis than 32 per cent who favour Donald Trump.

The contrast is more apparent when you ask Canadians their thoughts, with just more than 80 per cent of Canucks saying Trudeau is doing a better job dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic than just six per cent who point to Trump as outperforming.

Among Americans, Trudeau comes out ahead in almost every category from the handling of the economic crisis, helping citizens, to sharing information with citizens. However, when it comes to helping businesses amid the coronavirus crisis, Americans are even on who they think is handling that file best — respondents in the U.S. give both leaders 35 per cent support.

When it comes to breaking down who the Canadians support politically, Leger finds the majority of support for Trudeau comes from Liberal Party and New Democrat followers. Support is still higher than half for Canadians who support the Bloc Quebecois and the Green Party of Canada, with Conservatives showing the least amount of, albeit it still significant, support.

Meanwhile, the divide between Republican and Democratic voters on who they support through this crisis is stark. On the overall handling of the COVID-19 crisis, 64 per cent of Republicans say Trump is doing a better job, with just 13 per cent of these voters siding with Trudeau. The numbers are pretty much flipped when you look at Democratic voters, with 64 per cent favouring Trudeau and just 10 per cent showing support for their president.

A breakdown of how Canadians and Americans feel their leaders are handling the COVID-19 pandemic. (Courtesy Leger)

This split is seen among all the categories.

Despite Trump repeatedly spreading misinformation about COVID-19, more than 70 per cent say the president tells the truth to the public and surrounds himself with the best possible health experts.

Overall, when asked who they would prefer to have lead their country, 76 per cent of Canadians say they pick Trudeau, versus just 10 per cent who want Trump as their leader.

In the U.S., 42 per cent of Americans say they would prefer to have Trudeau lead them, versus 38 per cent who say Trump.

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