Ideological and partisan divisions on China and the US: Comparing public attitudes in Indo-Pacific countries

In view of rising tensions between China and the United States, and intensifying competition in the western Pacific, the alignment of east and southeast Asian nations with either superpower has become increasingly salient. While a growing literature has developed around their governments' strategic considerations and diplomatic stances, less attention has been paid to their citizens' opinions. The present study attempts to fill this gap by analyzing a unique dataset comprising surveys collected in more than a dozen Indo-Pacific nations, with at least 1200 respondents per country. We investigate how citizens perceive the two superpowers, and the extent to which these views are influenced by citizens' ideological orientations and partisan preferences. Given the rhetoric of long-ruling anti-communist dictatorships in many east and southeast countries, as well as the Chinese government's professed ideological stance, we hypothesize that respondents positioning themselves on the left of the ideological spectrum would be more sympathetic, or at least less hostile, toward China than those on the right. At the same yet, these patterns may be mediated by perceptions of their country's degree of economic dependence on China. We also test whether and how attitudes toward China constitute a partisan divide in each country.