King Charles’s tour of Australia has been hailed a stunning success as a new poll shows support for the monarchy there soaring.
The King’s personal popularity down under has risen strongly, with his approval rating climbing from 50 per cent last year to 58 per cent today.
That makes Charles significantly more popular than Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese, who scored 43 per cent.
And the exclusive poll for The Mail on Sunday shows that support for ditching the monarchy in Australia in favour of a republic has dropped to just 41 per cent.
That figure was 45 per cent when Australians voted in a nationwide referendum 25 years ago. Paul Smith, YouGov director of public data, said: ‘Our poll shows that if the republic referendum was held today, it would be defeated by a larger margin than in 1999.’
King Charles – accompanied by Queen Camilla – crammed in up to ten engagements a day on his whistle-stop tour.
He was greeted by tens of thousands of cheering well-wishers who waited in the baking heat to see the monarch, with many saying they were greatly touched by his decision to travel so far despite his cancer treatment.
The poll, conducted last week by YouGov, indicates that the tour has also grown support for the Royal Family as well as King Charles.
King Charles ’s tour of Australia has been hailed a stunning success as a new poll shows support for the monarchy there soaring
Nearly 45 per cent of the 1,500 Australians surveyed said the country should keep the monarchy after the King passes away, a rise from 35 per cent in 2023
Nearly 45 per cent of the 1,500 Australians surveyed said the country should keep the monarchy after the King passes away, a rise from 35 per cent in 2023.
Queen Camilla’s favourability score also rose an impressive eight percentage points to 44 per cent.
The Prince and Princess of Wales, who visited Australia in 2014 with a young Prince George, are still the most popular, at 74 and 73 per cent respectively.
And Meghan Markle and Prince Andrew were the least popular royals, scoring 30 per cent and 19 per cent. Lidia Thorpe, the senator who verbally attacked the King in parliament in Canberra, achieved a rating of just 13 per cent.
Royal biographer Hugo Vickers said: ‘This is certainly good news for the palace. There is enormous respect for the fact the King made the long trip to Australia when he has been unwell.
‘In fact, the Australian senator Lidia Thorpe shot herself in the foot with her protest because it inspired so many people to be annoyed about it and come out in the King’s favour.’
Philip Murphy, director of history and policy at the Institute of Historical Research, said: ‘Many people worried about what the death of the Queen would mean for the Commonwealth realms.
‘But King Charles’s low-key approach to royal visits, emphasising warmth and humour rather than “glamour”, has proved extremely well suited to the current climate.’
