WASHINGTON, DC – For the first time in two decades, U.S. opinion toward Egypt is in sharp decline with an overall favorability of 33%, according to a poll released by the Arab American Institute this week, with 34% holding a negative view. In July 2011, AAI polling showed 5% of Egyptians held a favorable view of the U.S. The poll released today was conducted by jzanalytics for NYU Abu Dhabi in January 2012, and surveyed 997 Americans nationwide. Key findings include that Americans hold a net negative view of Egypt; Americans are wary of the Muslim Brotherhood’s role in government; Americans are sharply divided along partisan lines when it comes to future U.S.-Egyptian relations; 60% of Americans say they need to know more about Egypt. 

In the past, Egypt always fared quite well in U.S. opinion. Since the 1990s Egypt’s favorable ratings have been between 55% to 65%, while the country’s unfavorable ratings were around 20%. With positive U.S. media coverage of the demonstrations in Tahrir Square, favorable ratings shot up, increasing 20 points. One year later, some Americans are uneasy with political developments in Egypt. When asked specifically how they felt about the Muslim Brotherhood winning control of the parliament, only 4% said this was a “positive development for Egypt”. Just 19% agreed “this was the outcome of a democratic election and we must accept the results,” while 26% said that this represented a “setback for Egypt” (a view held by 42% of Republicans). A substantial 39% were “not sure.”

— Arab American Institute