Democracy is a fragile thing. Every year, when we go to the polls for local, state, and federal elections, we participate in a process that relies on the public’s trust and investment in governmental institutions. In the U.S., however, public trust in government has been near historic lows for more than a decade. In a 2020 Pew Research Center survey, only about 20% of Americans agreed that they “trust the federal government to do what is right just about always/most of the time.” In March 2021, another Pew survey found that 67% of Americans agreed with the statement that “most politicians are corrupt.”
Amid the steady decline of public trust in the federal government, state and local governments are more insulated from criticism. Americans consistently trust their daily interactions with state and local governments, as opposed to a federal government that often feels distant and abstract. In recent years, however, even our trust in state and local institutions began to decline.
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