The first year of the second Trump administration brought striking shifts in US policy — and in Australian public opinion about the United States. Two hundred and fifty years since the signing of the US Declaration of Independence, how do Australians view Australia’s relationship with its most important ally?

In May 2026, the United States Studies Centre (USSC) polled over 1,000 Australians on their views of the United States and the Australia-US alliance. Below are ten key takeaways that provide a snapshot of how Australians now perceive their most important security partner at a pivotal moment in Australia-US relations. This precedes the release of the USSC’s annual Allies and Partners Poll later this year, which will also feature the views of American, Indian and Japanese citizens on these issues.

1. More Australians think Trump 2.0 has been very bad for Australia

Roughly a third of Australians (32%) now say the second Trump administration has been very bad for Australia — a 10-percentage point increase since 2025. However, overall sentiment remains consistent with 2025 levels, with only 16% of Australians saying that Trump’s second term has been good for Australia.

2. Australians increasingly see the United States as harmful in Asia

Only 1 in 5 Australians believe the United States is mostly helpful in Asia — a 13-percentage point drop since 2024. Meanwhile, a plurality of Australians (36%) continue to view the United States as mostly harmful — an increase of 15 percentage points since 2024.

Australian men are twice as likely as women to describe the United States as mostly helpful, while Labor voters are twice as likely as Coalition voters to describe it as mostly harmful.

3. Australians don’t think their government has explained why the US alliance is needed

Only 31% of Australians think that the Australian Government has properly explained why Australia needs its alliance with the United States.

As in 2025, only 42% of Australians believe that the US alliance makes Australia more secure, a 21-percentage point decline since 2022. Australian men and Coalition voters are both 19 percentage points more likely to agree, compared to women and Labor voters.

4. Australians remain concerned about the future of US democracy

A majority of Australians continue to be concerned about misinformation (83%) and potential political violence (81%) in the United States, as well as the future of US democracy (71%), almost unchanged from 2025.

5. But despite unease about the United States, Australians want to stick with the alliance

Only 15% of Australians think that Australia should withdraw from the US alliance. A majority of Australians (58%) disagree with doing so.

6. Australians think that the United States is likely to become a better ally in the future

Looking to the future, Australians are split between agreeing (45%) and being unsure (45%) about whether the United States will become a better ally of Australia after Donald Trump’s presidency ends. Only 10% disagree that this will be the case.

7. Australians continue to see the United States as an ally, economic partner and fellow democracy

Views of the United States in relation to Australia remain largely unchanged from 2025. Two-thirds of Australians (66%) continue to describe the United States as an ally, while nearly one-third (30%) say it poses a danger to Australia. Compared to Labor voters, Coalition voters are 14 percentage points more likely to agree that the United States is an ally, while Labor voters are 14 percentage points more likely to agree that the United States is a danger.

8. Most Australians maintain faith in US elections

Despite their concerns about the future of US democracy, a majority of Australians (51%) think US elections will generally continue to be free and fair. Only 3% of Australians believe it is likely that the United States will stop holding elections altogether.

9. Half of Australians think their country needs its alliance with the United States more than ever

Half of Australians (49%) say that Australia needs its alliance with the United States more than ever. However, only 37% of younger Australians agree, compared to 63% of older Australians. This generational divide has grown by eight percentage points since 2025.

10. Australians support stronger relationships with other middle powers and increased defence spending — but are divided on partisan and generational lines

Three-quarters (75%) of Australians want their country to deepen security relationships with other middle powers. While 61% of Australians support increased defence spending, only 42% want Australia to adopt a policy of neutrality. Half of Australians aged under 35 (49%) support a higher defence budget, compared to 76% of Australians aged over 65. 

Only 18% of Australians want Australia to become closer to China instead of the United States. Compared to their Coalition counterparts, Labor voters are far more open to Australia becoming closer with China (31% opposed compared to 59%) and adopting a policy of neutrality (49% support compared to 30%).

Methodology

The polling data in this publication is derived from a survey conducted between 13 May and 22 May 2026 by YouGov, on behalf of the United States Studies Centre. The survey was administered online to a representative sample of 1,045 adult, citizen Australians.

The survey builds on previous USSC surveys of representative Australian samples in August 2025, June 2024, August 2023, and September 2022. The margin of error is approximately 3% but larger for subsets of population. Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding.