The first major poll since Hillary Clinton was declared the presumptive Democratic nominee this finds her trailing Republican rival Donald Trump — among voters in Russia, at least.
While a majority of Russians said they were undecided or apathetic about the U.S. presidential race, 22 percent of those who expressed an opinion said they had a favorable impression of Mr. Trump, compared to just 8 percent for Mrs. Clinton. Some 46 percent of those polled by the Moscow-based Public Opinion Foundation late last month had a negative opinion of Mrs. Clinton, twice the number who say they dislike Mr. Trump.
The poll results were reported by the Russian Interfax news service and the website Russia Beyond the Headlines.
As secretary of state, Mrs. Clinton oversaw the ill-fated “reset” of relations with the government of Russian President Vladimir Putin, only to see bilateral ties plummet following Moscow’s annexation of the Crimea region from Ukraine.
Mr. Trump, by contrast, has expressed admiration for Mr. Putin’s strong leadership skills, and Mr. Putin has praised Mr. Trump’s comments that he would seek better U.S.-Russian relations if he wins in November.
While generally pessimistic about the state of U.S.-Russian ties, 14 percent of poll respondents said that the GOP presumptive nominee is “better disposed towards Russia, while 6 percent agreed with the statement that Mrs. Clinton “was aggressive and not nice.”
• David R. Sands can be reached at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
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