Australians think Donald Trump’s return will be a disaster – but millennial men disagree

These are the Aussies who think Donald Trump will be a good president while other Australians are bracing for disaster.

The “bro vote” that powered Donald Trump to victory over Kamala Harris is also a factor in Australia, with new polling showing millennial men are far more likely to have a positive view of the President-elect.

The Talbot Mills Research poll, conducted in the week after the former president’s stunning US election victory, found 45 per cent of Australians thought his return to power would be a disaster and just 23 per cent believed he would be a good president.

Among men aged 30 to 44, however, 43 per cent said the Republican would be a good president, double the number who believed his second term would be a disaster.

Fewer than one in five women surveyed thought Mr Trump would be a good president.

Donald Trump celebrates his election victory. Picture: AFP

The poll also found 36 per cent of Australian men believed Mr Trump’s presidency would have a positive impact on Australia – more than the 34 per cent who thought it would have a negative effect – while just 23 per cent of women were similarly optimistic.

Talbot Mills Research director David Talbot said this was consistent with his pre-election polling that found Mr Trump’s support was “strongest with young Australian men”.

The 78 year old successfully targeted young men – who are typically less likely to vote in America’s voluntary elections – by appearing on podcasts including The Joe Rogan Experience, the country’s most popular podcast with an overwhelmingly male audience.

The strategy sharpened the gender divide as the majority of women voted for Ms Harris, who made restoring reproductive rights a centrepiece of her campaign.

Mr Talbot said Australians appeared to be “wary in the aftermath of Trump’s win, particularly when it comes to trade and international security”, with those surveyed believing his return was more likely to lead to Russia’s victory over Ukraine and less likely to enable co-operation on climate change.

Trump supporters at a campaign rally. Picture: AFP

While 37 per cent thought it was likely Mr Trump would force changes to AUKUS, 29 per cent believed his return would make no difference to the defence pact and 24 per cent were unsure.

Asked to describe the President-elect in a word, the 1000 people surveyed suggested everything from “funny”, “legend” and “awesome” to “moron”, “dickhead” and “wanker”.

“Australians preferred Kamala Harris over Donald Trump before the US election, so it makes sense that 45 per cent of Aussies think the Trump presidency will be a disaster,” Mr Talbot said.

Overall, 41 per cent of those surveyed said they believed Mr Trump’s second term would have a negative impact on Australia, compared to 30 per cent who believed it would be positive for one of America’s closest allies.

In particular, 59 per cent of Australians were bracing for Mr Trump’s imposition of sweeping tariffs that could harm Australian exporters and spark a global trade war.

Originally published as Australians think Donald Trump’s return will be a disaster – but millennial men disagree