President Trump has ended former President Obama’s 12-year run as the most admired man in America, edging out his predecessor in the annual Gallup survey released Tuesday.
The Hill reports that 18 per cent of the survey’s respondents named Trump as their most admired man, compared to 15 per cent who named Obama and 6 per cent who named President-elect Joe Biden. Three per cent named National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci, while 2 per cent said Pope Francis.
Rounding out the top 10 were Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and the Dalai Lama, all of whom received 1 per cent.
The current US president has been named the pollster’s most-admired man in 60 out of 74 years, including all eight years of Obama’s presidency and every year of George W. Bush’s presidency except for 2008. Trump had finished second to Obama in 2017 and 2018.
The 2020 rankings are the 10th time Trump has ranked among the top 10. Before entering the political sphere, he made the list in 1988, 1989, 1990 and 2011. Biden made only his second appearance in the top 10 after making the list in 2018.
Among Republicans, 48 per cent of respondents named Trump. No other public figure got more than 2 per cent Republican support, according to Gallup.
Among independents, both Obama and Trump received 11 per cent support.
Fauci was the choice of 5 per cent of Democrats but 1 per cent of Republicans.
The record holder for appearances in the top 10 is the late Rev. Billy Graham, who made the list 61 times before his 2018 death.
Former President Carter, who has appeared on the list 29 times, is the most-represented living person.
Twenty-one per cent of Americans offered no response, while 11 per cent named a friend or relative.
Pollsters surveyed 1,018 adults from Dec. 1 to 17. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
(The Hill)
