Exclusive Reader's Digest Global Poll: US Election 2008

It's a good thing for John McCain that only American citizens can vote in US presidential elections. If the election were held overseas, the Republican nominee wouldn't stand a chance.

This was just one of the remarkable findings in a new Reader's Digest Global Poll in which we asked some 17,000 people in 17 countries to name the issues they care about most, and also tell us how they feel about the US and the presidential contenders.

"It's Obama by a landslide - except in the country in which he's actually running for president," says John Fredricks, director of polling and research for Reader's Digest."What is most striking is the margin of his support."

In the poll, we asked people to give us their views on the presidential candidates, America's image in the world, and the most important issues facing the world today. We asked how they imagined the 2008 US election would shape their lives and whether, given the chance, they would move to the United States.

Amid all this data, however, the most stark result is the overwhelming support overseas for the Democratic nominee, Senator Barack Obama.

"Obama represents something different," says Klas Bergman, director of communications for the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe. "He seems ready to listen rather than dictate. The fact that he's African- American only adds to the mystique."

Survey results

* In all 16 nations surveyed outside the US, where the race was within a couple of points, Obama led McCain by huge margins, ranging from an 84% margin in the Netherlands to 35% in India and Russia.

* In none of the 16 nations outside the US did McCain's support top 26%.

* Negative feelings towards George W. Bush, which seem to be driving the support for Obama, don't seem to be generalised towards Americans. We asked respondents to tell us their views of the United States government. The overwhelming response was "neutral", and in just over half of the 16 countries surveyed did "anti-American" edge out "pro-American".

* The poll also demonstrates that there is no such thing as a monolithic world view. Eight issues were presented in the poll: terrorism, the war in Iraq, the global economy, global poverty, human rights, the environment, international trade and nuclear proliferation. Priorities differed dramatically from place to place.

* The environment was the top concern among respondents from Australia, Taiwan, Brazil, Finland, Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom.

* Global poverty was the top concern of French, Spanish, Mexican, Polish, Dutch and South African respondents - and the second most important issue for Australians. A minuscule 4% of Americans thought it the most important issue.