Gallup recently conducted a 50-state poll asking residents whether they do or do not have confidence in their state’s “government in general.” According to the results, 48 percent of Alabamians surveyed are confident in the state’s government and 51 percent are not confident.
Alabama ranked 40th out of 50 states in confidence levels, only beating out Illinois (25 percent), Rhode Island (33 percent), Connecticut (39 percent), New Jersey (41 percent), Louisiana (44 percent), Kansas (45 percent), Pennsylvania (46 percent) and New York (46 percent). Alabama tied with Maine at 48 percent.
Corruption and challenging economic times are likely contributors to a state’s ranking among the least confident in their government, according to Gallup.
The poll was conducted March through December 2015.
Results from a 2013 poll asking respondents about what level of “trust and confidence” they have in their state’s government showed a negative relationship between state population size and trust in government. The residents in less populous states tended to have greater confidence in their state government than those living in more populous states.
In terms of region, Western states tend to express the highest confidence in their state governments, while Wyoming, Utah and Montana are among the states with the most confidence in government the Midwest’s average score is held down by Illinois’ low level of trust. The East has the lowest average confidence score, as it is home to five of the states where residents have the lowest confidence.
Economic health
Why does this matter?
Gallup says given the strong relationship between residents’ confidence in their government and their perception of the state’s economic health, some states with less confidence could see that turn around if the economic conditions improve. And on the other side, states that have a higher trust in their government may become less trusting and less confident if their economy took a nosedive.
In some states where a long history of corruption lingers, like Illinois and Louisiana, there may be cultural or institutional hurdles to overcome, Gallup reported, and it may take more than an improving economy to engender confidence in those states’ elected officials.
(Neisha Roberts, Gallup)
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