Americans overwhelmingly view China as either a “competitor” or an “enemy”, rather than a “partner.” According to a Pew Research Center survey, most American adults do not believe their country is winning the competition of geopolitical influence. 

According to the study, nearly half of Americans, approximately 47%, said that the US is faced with a weakening foreign influence status. 32% said that the influence of the US remains unchanged while only one in five said that the US’ influence is increasing.

The survey showed a stark comparison between the US and China’s image with respect to US adults. According to Pew Research Center, two-thirds of US adults say that China’s global influence has increased. Only one in five say that China’s influence remains stagnant while one in ten argue that China’s influence has been diminishing.

The research center found that the views pertaining to the countries’ sway in the international world are marked, and associated, with both the partisanship and ideology of the decision-maker.

For example, Republicans and Republican-leaning independents are much more likely (63%) than Democrats and Democrat-leaning independents (37%) to say that the US’s influence in the world has been declining. 

In terms of ideology, self-described conservative Republicans (70%) are noticeably more likely than moderate or liberal Republicans (47%), while liberal Democrats are more inclined (43%) than conservative or moderate Democrats (32%), to say US influence has been fading.

Moreover, when contextualized further to include views on China’s sway, the association remains fundamental in that Republicans remain more likely than Democrats to view China as a threat to the US since its influence has started expanding in the face of a declining US influence (78% vs. 63% respectively).

Percentages vary though within each party: Nearly 78% of conservative Republicans vocalized their concern with China’s growing influence versus 60% of the moderate and liberal Republicans saying the same. Among Democrats, 72% of liberals think China’s power is mounting, while only 57% of moderates and conservatives say the same.

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