Americans Still More Trusting of Local Than State Government.
Byline: Justin McCarthy
Synopsis: Seventy-two percent of U.S. adults say they have a "great deal" or a "fair amount" of trust in their local government, while 63% trust their state government.
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Americans continue the decade-long trend of being more trusting of their local government than of their state government. Currently, 72% of U.S. adults say they have a "great deal" or a "fair amount" of trust in their local government, compared with 63% who say the same about their state government.
The latest ratings, recorded in Gallup's annual Governance poll, conducted Sept. 4-12, mark a continuation of fairly high levels of trust for local governments -- a trend that has varied little over the past two decades.
Confidence in local government was slightly lower in the 1970s, when Gallup recorded its lowest marks -- 63% in the first poll in 1972 and 65% in 1976. But confidence in local government improved when Americans were asked about it again in the 1990s -- peaking at its highest rating of 77% in 1998. Since 2001, this figure has remained within a narrow range of 68% to 74%.
Meanwhile, confidence in state government has varied more, from a high of 80% in 1998 when the economy was robust and unemployment was low, to a low of 51% in 2009, as states across the country struggled to balance budgets amid the Great Recession. The latest measure of 63% matches the previous year's figure and is similar to the historical average of 64% for this measure since 1972. Confidence in state governments has improved from the immediate recession-related drop, but has not recovered back to pre-recession levels.
Locked out of power at the federal level, Democrats have placed greater than usual trust in state and local government in the past two years. Currently, 78% of Democrats say they have confidence in local government -- up from 66% in 2016, and the highest level of trust they have recorded on this measure from 2001 to today. Meanwhile, Republicans' (74%) and independents' (67%) confidence in local government has remained fairly stable since the 2016 election.
Today's pattern contrasts with the historical trend, in which Republicans have had slightly higher confidence than Democrats and independents in local government -- perhaps reflecting the GOP's general view that smaller government is better. On average since 2001, 74% of Republicans have had confidence in local government compared with 70% of Democrats and 68% of independents.
...
To continue reading
Request your trial