A year after their Netflix show sparked controversy, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have regained their popularity among Americans, according to a new poll by Redfield & Wilton for Newsweek.
The poll, conducted on December 8, surveyed 1,500 Americans about their views on the Sussexes, who have been living in Montecito, California, since stepping back from their royal duties.
The results show that Harry and Meghan have posted their best net approval ratings in ten rounds of polling, reversing the decline they suffered after the release of their Netflix show Prince Harry & Meghan and Harry’s memoir Spare.
What the poll states
On December 5, 2022, Harry had a net approval rating of plus 38 while Meghan’s was plus 23, based on the percentage of people who liked them minus the percentage who disliked them.
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But their ratings plummeted after their Netflix show aired on December 8, 2022, featuring Meghan’s mock curtsy, which some saw as disrespectful to the local culture. Harry’s book, which came out a month later, also revealed intimate details about his life, including his experience of getting frostbite on his penis.
By January 2023, Harry’s net approval rating had dropped to -7 and Meghan’s to -13, indicating that more people disliked them than liked them.
However, a year later, on December 8, 2023, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex bounced back, with Harry’s net approval rating rising to plus 29 and Meghan’s to plus 15.
The poll also reveals some interesting differences among different groups of Americans. Meghan was more popular among millennials, with 53 percent liking her and 16 percent disliking her, while boomers were the only age group where she was more disliked than liked, with 27 percent liking her and 38 percent disliking her.
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Susexxes political venture
Meghan also had more support from 2020 Joe Biden voters, with 51 percent approving of her and 17 percent opposing her, while 2020 Donald Trump voters were more divided, with 29 percent liking her and 35 percent disliking her.
Harry, on the other hand, was liked by both Biden and Trump voters, with 58 percent and 38 percent respectively viewing him favorably, and 12 percent and 24 percent respectively viewing him unfavorably.
The poll suggests that Harry and Meghan have benefited from a period of relative quiet after the media frenzy that followed their Netflix show and Harry’s book. It also indicates that they have not been affected by the recent scandal in the UK, where a book by Omid Scobie named King Charles III as the royal who made a racist remark about their unborn child.