Global Poll Shows Countries Outside U.S. Want Obama to Win Election

A poll of 22,500 people living in 22 different countries shows people around the world unanimously want Barack Obama to win the U.S. election in November. The BBC World Service poll shows Obama is favoured by a four-to-one margin. Digital Journal -- If you look at the polls, Americans and people living in other countries seem to disagree on who is best fit to lead the U.S. in the next four years. While polls in the U.S. show Republican presidential candidate, John McCain, is leading against Democratic candidate Barack Obama, Obama has picked up enormous support worldwide. According to a BBC World Poll, people in 17 of the 22 countries polled believe U.S. international relations would improve under the direction of Obama, while most people said they would remain the same under McCain. The BBC's poll was conducted before the Democratic and Republican conventions, and thus before McCain's much talked-about selection of Sarah Palin as his choice for Vice President. On average, the BBC reports 49 per cent of respondents preferred Obama as choice for U.S. president, while 12 per cent thought McCain was best fit, and almost 40 per cent did not share their opinion. When it comes to foreign policy, 46 per cent of respondents believed a President Obama would improve U.S. relations with the rest of the world, 22 per cent said they would stay the same and seven per cent said they would worsen. For McCain, 20 per cent believed international relations would improve under his leadership, and that feeling is shared by a modest margin from people in China, India and Nigeria. Out of the other respondents, 37 per cent believed foreign relations would stay the same under McCain and 16 per cent said they would deteriorate. The BBC also made a strange observation from the polls: Most people in Turkey preferred Obama to McCain, but more people in that country also thought U.S. relations would worsen under Obama's direction. When it comes to Democratic support, U.S. Nato allies were more likely to believe Obama would be a better fit than McCain for president. That belief was held by a huge majority in Canada (69%), Italy (64%), France (62%), Germany (61%), the UK (54%), as well as Australia (62%), Kenya (87%) and Nigeria (71%). So what does the U.S. think of itself and its own foreign policy under each potential leader? The BBC polled Americans separately, and many (46%) said an Obama presidency would improve U.S. international relations more than a McCain presidency, while 30 per cent of Americans believed McCain would do a better job on a global scale. The BBC poll included 22,531 citizens from Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya, Lebanon, Mexico, Nigeria, Panama, the Philippines, Poland, Russia, Singapore, Turkey, the UAE and the UK. A parallel survey was conducted with 1,000 US adults. The poll was conducted between July and August by GlobeScan and the Program on International Policy Attitudes. The 19-page report, including interview questions, can be found in PDF format here. The BBC has come under fire for conducting this poll, as critics say it was a massive waste of money. According to reports, the BBC spent an estimated £50,000 ($88,000 USD) on the poll, but critics say the U.S. already produces countless polls with more useful information.