Harvard Poll Finds Netanyahu More Popular Than Mamdani, Vast Majority Says ‘Reject’ Hasan Piker

(Ohad Zwigenberg/Yuki Iwamura/Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP photos)

Harvard’s Center for American Political Studies (CAPS) and Harris Insights released a new poll this week surveying how Americans feel about the direction of the country, the midterm elections, and approval ratings from some top newsmakers.

The poll, conducted between August 28th and the 30th, offered some surprise takeaways, as Robert F. Kennedy Jr. came in with the highest overall favorability rating and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu topped New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) in terms of being slightly less unpopular.

RFK Jr. topped the chart as he scored a 43% net favorability and a 39% net unfavorable rating, giving him an overall +4% rating in the poll. Marco Rubio tied RFK Jr. at +4% with a 38% to 34% favorability spread. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney was the only other leader polled who had a net positive favorability rating with +1% from a 27% to 26% spread – the other 47% of respondents either had “no opinion” or had “never heard of” Carney.

Netanyahu, meanwhile, came in underwater at -10% with a 27% to 37% unfavorable spread. Mamdani landed at -14% with a 25% to 39% unfavorable spread. Tucker Carlson, Abdul El-Sayed, and Vladimir Putin rounded out the bottom of the chart with -16%, -18%, and -54% overall negative ratings, respectively.

Screenshot via the Harvard CAPS/Harris poll

The poll also dabbled in media a bit, asking its 2,100 registered voter respondents about internet provocateurs Hasan Piker and Candace Owens.

In a section on rising extremism in both parties, the poll asked, “Do you think that the Democratic Party should embrace or reject people like Hasan Piker who have said things like America deserved 9/11?”

A whopping 77% of all respondents said to “reject” Piker, while 23% said to “embrace” him. The partisan split was similar, with 21% of GOP voters saying to “embrace” Piker and 28% of Democrats saying to “embrace” him. 79% of GOP voters said to “reject” him, while 72% of Democrats said “reject.”

The poll asked a similar question about the GOP: “Do you think that the Republican Party should embrace or reject people like Candace Owens who have said things like the Jews are behind everything?”

75% of overall respondents said to “reject” Candace Owens, while 25% said to “embrace” her. Among GOP voters, 73% said to “reject” her, while 76% of Democrats agreed. 27% of GOP voters said to “embrace” Owens, while 24% of Democrats agreed.

Additionally, the poll asked about views that the GOP and the Democratic Party are being taken over by their far-left and far-right flanks. 51% of total respondents said the Democratic Party was “Being taken over by the far left,” while 49% said, “That view is exaggerated.” For the GOP, 55% said it was “Being taken over by the far right,” while 45% said, “That view is exaggerated.”

The Democrats held a narrow two-point margin over the GOP, 51 to 49%, on the general congressional ballot, as only 37% of Americans say the country is “on the right track” – up two percent since July. 52% of Americans fear the country is on the “wrong track” as President Donald Trump’s approval rating came in at 44% — up from 42% in July. The poll carries a 2.1% margin of error.

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