Editor’s Note: Arick Wierson is an Emmy Award-winning television producer and former senior media adviser to former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. He advises corporate clients on communications strategies in the United States, Latin America, and Africa. Read more opinion on CNN.
CNN
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Although American voters are the ones who will choose the next president of the United States, people across the globe are watching the developments of this election with great interest. And among those watching most closely are world leaders near and far.
Global surveys conducted in recent months have concluded that President Joe Biden enjoys far more international support than former President Donald Trump. Moreover, across a broad swath of high and middle income countries, the percentage of foreigners who said they trust Biden “to do the right thing regarding world affairs” was significantly higher than those who said they trusted Trump.
Of course, world leaders have generally stayed mum on the issue of which man they prefer – although I would wager that most favor the status quo over a return to the raucous years of Trump’s presidency.
“I am not going out on much of limb by saying that world leaders felt quite uncomfortable with Trump and his reckless foreign policies during his term in office,” veteran political strategist Hank Sheinkopf told me.
“Europeans trust Biden and worry whether a possible return of Trump will signal an end to NATO and their ability to count on America to protect them with its nuclear shield and vast military capabilities,” added Sheinkopf, who has advised on political campaigns in 14 different countries during his storied career.
“Leaders across Asia are generally worried about what the destabilizing nature of Trump’s aggressive stance against China might have in the region. And for leaders in Latin America and Africa, it’s no secret that these are areas of the world that Trump doesn’t care much about at all,” he said.
“To sum it up, unless we’re talking about some far-right populists like Javier Milei in Argentina, embattled pols like Israel’s Netanyahu, or autocrats like Victor Orbán in Hungary and Russia’s Vladimir Putin, it’s a pretty safe bet to say world leaders are rooting — praying even — for a Biden part deux,” said Sheinkopf.
With so much at stake — whether it’s climate change or global security — world leaders can be forgiven for breaking with tradition and making their case to the American people for why the US would be well-advised to give Biden another term.
Although many on the American right would likely lambast such pronouncements by foreign leaders and accuse them of “meddling” in our elections, those in the middle – in particular, the 6% of voters in six swing states who will actually decide who wins in November – might actually care to know how the rest of the world feels about the choices before them.
Some world leaders have already signaled their aversion to another Trump presidency. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who endured a tough couple of years during the first Trump administration, has been quite vocal about the threat another Trump presidency could have on global climate action.
And there is one global leader who isn’t at all afraid about speaking his mind: Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who came right out and said the quiet part out loud. “I hope Biden wins the election,” affirmed the Worker’s Party leader in an interview with a Brazilian TV station in February. “Although I am not a US voter, I think it’s obvious that Biden is a greater guarantee for the survival of democracy in the world and the United States.”
For American voters who are on the fence about an octogenarian Biden who seems to have lost some pep in his step, or those who have some serious misgivings about America’s role in supporting Israel’s war in Gaza, perhaps hearing more about the cataclysmic impact a second Trump term would have on hundreds of millions — even billions — of people across the globe might mean something.
But for these foreign leaders, coming out against Trump is a move that is chock full of risks.
“Trump, if elected, will take Lula’s action personally,” observed Sheinkopf. It’s entirely feasible that Trump will then work to end the influence of the BRICS (a bloc of major emerging economies, including Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) just to get even,” Sheinkopf added.
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According to one recent Axios report, the advice to foreign leaders from one plugged-in Washington lobbyist was to play it safe: “Don’t put yourself in a position where you can be perceived as being pro-Biden. Because that can be interpreted the wrong way by Team Trump. Likewise, Team Biden could interpret any pro-Trump overtures the same way.”
But when the defense of democracy, climate change and perhaps even global security are at risk, playing it safe is no longer a valid option for these world leaders.
While it’s been a hallmark of our democratic system that Americans of all political stripes should be wary of foreign interests of any kind who seek to influence our elections, this is no ordinary time.
The next US president will make decisions that will not only affect some 340 million Americans — but nearly every person on planet earth. Among the critical global issues weighing in the balance this November: how we as a planet address climate action, whether the US decides to preserve decades-old global security alliances, and most importantly, whether the US will continue to be a beacon of light in the promotion and defense of democracy.
The stakes in this election are too high for global leaders to stay mum. Hopefully more of them speak up about the dangers of a second go-around with Trump.
And hopefully some Americans — particularly in those critical swing states — will be listening.