Distrust of Government Is Widespread

Nearly half of voters think government officials are lying most or all of the time, and no branch of the federal government is highly trusted.

A new national telephone and online survey by Rasmussen Reports and The National Pulse finds that 15% of Likely U.S. Voters believe that, when government officials speak, they’re lying all the time, while another 33% say officials are lying most of the time.  Another 40% think government officials are lying some of the time, while six percent (6%) say officials rarely lie and one percent (1%) believe government officials never lie. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Asked which of the three branches of the federal government they trust the most, 23% of voters say the executive branch, while 18% trust the judiciary the most and 12% trust Congress the most. However, 39% say they trust none of the branches of the federal government.

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The survey of 1,110 U.S. Likely Voters was conducted on July 10-11 and 14, 2024 by Rasmussen Reports and The National Pulse. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

The more strongly voters suspect government officials of lying, the more likely they are to say that the judiciary is the branch of the federal government they trust the most, whereas those least suspicious of lying government officials are most likely to trust the executive branch.

More Republicans (56%) than Democrats (45%) or voters not affiliated with either major party (44%) believe government officials are lying at least most of the time.

Democrats (38%) are more likely than Republicans (11%) or unaffiliated voters (18%) to say they trust the executive branch the most. Republicans are more likely to trust either the judiciary branch or Congress, while unaffiliated voters are most likely to say they trust none of the branches of the federal government.

Men are more likely than women voters to think government officials are usually lying, and twice as many men (24%) as women voters (12%) say the judiciary is the branch of the federal government they trust the most.

Forty-six percent (46%) of whites, 55% of black voters, 54% of Hispanics and 51% of other minorities believe government officials are lying at least most of the time. Black voters are more likely to trust the executive branch of the federal government.

Voters under 40 are most distrustful of government officials. Fifty-eight percent (58%) of under-40 voters say government officials are lying at least most of the time, compared to 47% of those ages 40-64 and 38% of voters 65 and older. 

Breaking down the electorate by income categories, a majority of voters earning less than $50,000 a year think government officials are lying either most or all of the time, while those in the top bracket – with annual incomes over $200,000 – place the most trust in the executive branch of the federal government.

A majority of voters like former President Donald Trump’s choice of Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance as his vice presidential running mate. 

Nearly half of American voters would support laws to protect U.S. business from a European Union (EU) policy that imposes strict environmental, climate, and social justice rules on companies. 

Additional information from this survey and a full demographic breakdown are available to the public as well as to Platinum Members.

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