40% of Americans have never heard of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi

Narendra Modi, the prime minister of India, is not well known in the United States. Among those who have heard of him, he is not viewed favorably.

40% of Americans have never heard of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi

Photo: Navesh Chtrakar (Reuters).

Narendra Modi, the Indian Prime Minister is one of the most well-known leaders in India. However, he's not as well known in the US. According to a recent Pew survey, among Americans who've heard of him he does not inspire confidence.

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The survey of 3,576 adults conducted between March 20 and 26 showed that 40% had never heard of Modi. He is currently serving his second term in office as leader of the largest democracy on earth.

Modi is less familiar to younger Americans. In the 18 to 29 age group, 59% said they had never heard of Modi compared to 28% in those 65 years and older. Pew reported yesterday (17 April) that "both Republicans and Democrats are in the majority who have never heard of Modi".

Only 3% of the respondents in the Pew study said that they did not know Vladimir Putin's name. Putin was also the subject of the greatest mistrust. Over 70% of respondents expressed a lack of confidence in the Russian leader.

The report stated that "more than half (56%) of US adults have some faith in [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelenskyy's ability to make the right decisions regarding international affairs." "By contrast, fewer that one in ten Americans have confidence in Chinese president Xi Jinping (8%), or...Putin.

Modi had an approval rating of 76% in India, according to a report that was published earlier this week. However, the Pew Survey figure for Americans who "do the right thing" is a mere 1%. The report stated that up to 37% of Americans have "little or no confidence" in Modi's ability to make the right decisions regarding international affairs. Pew's bipartisan survey found that Republicans (21%) and Democrats (22%) expressed the same level of confidence in Modi, which was the closest result amongst all leaders surveyed.