The most unpopular democratic leaders

In a survey conducted by the New York Times on the unpopularity of democratic heads of state, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was voted first place as the most disliked in the Western world.

With 73% of respondents' votes, Scholz tops the list of "disapproval of heads of state in developed democracies," per the New York Times’s survey.

The data was collected by the US company Morning Consult through online surveys between February 26 and March 6, 2024.

The most disliked, after Olaf Scholz, is French head of state Emmanuel Macron with 70% of the vote.

Yoon Suk Yeol, South Korea’s head of state, was elected third with 70% of the vote.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is tied with Yoon Suk Yeol with an equal 70% of the vote.

According to the survey, Rishi Sunak, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, is in fourth place. He received 66% of the vote.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is in fifth place with 59% of the vote.

US President Joe Biden came in only sixth among the most unpopular Western heads of state with 54% of the vote.

Seventh place goes to Alexander De Croo. The Belgian head of government received 46% of the votes.

The New York Times cites four reasons for the dissatisfaction of Western respondents with their heads of state: first, inflation; second, immigration policies; third, inequality in the distribution of wealth; and fourth, a kind of voter 'fatigue' with politicians who have been in office for a long time.

However, Olaf Scholz stands out on the fourth point because he has only been in office for two years.

However, there’s another ranking called "Global Leader Approval Rating Tracker" by Morning Consult, for which the data was collected from March 28 to April 3, and that mixes up positions a bit, leaving Scholz as the fourth most unpopular leader.

That list is headed by Yoon Suk Yeol, with Petr Fiala, the Czech head of state, and Emmanel Macron following in second and third place respectively.

By the way, Narendra Modi, the Indian Prime Minister, is ranked first place among the most popular heads of government in this global rating.

Morning Consult's data was collected over seven days from adults in each country. It should be noted, however, that it is not clear how many people took part in the survey or if it targeted groups that represent a majority.