Trust in the European Commission and its president, Ursula von der Leyen, has significantly faltered, according to a new survey from the European Public Opinion Barometer conducted by Cluster17.
The survey, which ran this month, September 2025, found 75 percent of respondents say von der Leyen has poorly defended Europe’s interests in negotiations. Another 72 percent do not trust her on economic matters.
A whopping 60 percent want her to resign.
The only problem? She was never elected by the European people to begin with, merely installed into power.
This figure is exceptionally high in France, at 70 percent, and lowest in Poland, at 48 percent. According to the survey, 61 percent of Europeans blame the European Commission for the unfavorable trade agreement signed with the United States.
The survey also showed that 41 percent of respondents believe that a political leader such as Michel Barnier would represent the EU more effectively in negotiations with Donald Trump, while 25 percent would stick to a technocratic approach (such as Maroš Šefčovič). The share of undecided people is 34 percent, with this figure being particularly high in Poland.
Europeans appear to be humiliated by the trade agreement signed with the U.S., which will hit Europe with 15 percent tariffs while the U.S. does not pay any.
The representative survey of more than 5,300 people in France, Italy, Spain, Germany and Poland examined the perception of the agreement, the performance of the EU leadership, and Europeans’ strategic expectations towards Donald Trump and the United States.
According to the research, 71 percent of respondents have heard of the customs agreement, with awareness particularly high in France, Italy and Spain, while it is lower in Poland.
Over half (52 percent) of Europeans found the deal humiliating, with this feeling most intense in France (65 percent).
Seventy-seven percent of those surveyed believe that the United States benefits from the agreement, while only 2 percent think that the EU has gained from it.
European companies are considered the biggest losers (42 percent), and 68 percent also have a negative view of the American arms purchase obligation.
The lopsided deal has a lot for Europeans to be unhappy about, and the Trump team is almost certainly taking a victory lap.
The economic and energy conditions imposed by the United States – $600 billion in European investment and $750 billion in energy imports by 2028 – are opposed by 76 percent of respondents, especially in France (81 percent) and Germany (81 percent).
The exception is Poland, where opinions are divided (51 percent opposed). According to the survey, 70 percent of Europeans would be ready to boycott American products, compared to 83 percent in France.
Europeans are also not fans of Donald Trump, with 83 percent seeing him as authoritarian, 44 percent as an enemy, and only 10 percent seeing him as a friend.
However, when it comes to a strategy of dealing with Trump, 50 percent want compromise, 39 percent want resistance, and 11 percent are unsure.
