Only 1% of Americans see Russia as a major problem – poll

Americans view soaring inflation, poor governance and the state of the economy as their country’s biggest problems, with just 1% mentioning Russia, according to a poll released by Gallup on Monday.

Despite the Ukraine conflict remaining a major news story in the US, the share of respondents concerned by Russia’s actions has fallen sharply after hitting 9% in March, the month that followed Moscow’s offensive, the polling agency said. The latest data was compiled on July 5-26.

Abortion has become a prominent issue for Americans, with 8% mentioning it as the most serious problem in the country. The level was the highest since 1984, when the agency started tracking it.

The spike in concern over abortion rights follows the US Supreme Court ruling in June that overturned Roe v Wade— the 1973 landmark decision that guaranteed the constitutional right to terminate a pregnancy.

Democrats and blue-leaning independents drove the metric up, with 13% of such respondents mentioning it, as opposed to 4% of Republicans and red-leaning independents.

Abortion issues trailed behind three problems that the US public perceives as more pressing. Inflation and dysfunction in the US government each accounted for 17%, while the general state of the economy concerned 12% of those polled. Overall, the state of the economy was named as the biggest problem for the US, with 35% flagging the issue, modestly down from June, Gallup said.

Russia is not the only story being closely covered by the American media that the public is turning away from, according to the poll. Others included the Covid-19 pandemic, extreme weather, climate change, and the House Select Committee hearings on the January 6 2021 Capitol riots.