Trust in legislative branch highest in nearly a decade

Americans’ trust in the legislative branch of the federal government has reached its highest point in nine years, with 40 percent of Americans saying they have at least a “fair amount” of trust in lawmakers, according to a poll released Monday.

A Gallup poll found that 40 percent of Americans have either a “fair amount” or “great deal” of trust in the legislative branch, up from 35 percent a year ago. The uptick in trust comes despite consistently low approval ratings for Congress.

The poll showed that Republicans have more trust in the GOP-held Congress than Democrats by a significant margin.

{mosads}Forty-nine percent of Republicans said they trust the legislative branch, compared to 34 percent of Democratic respondents who said the same.

The 40 percent of Americans who trust the legislative branch is in line with the 42 percent who said they trust the executive branch.

The judicial branch earned the most trust among respondents, with 68 percent saying they have at least a “fair amount” of trust. 

While trust in Congress has steadily increased in the Gallup poll since roughly 2014, the legislative branch continues to garner floundering approval ratings. A Gallup poll released last month showed that just 19 percent of Americans approve of Congress’s performance.

The poll surveyed 1,035 adults from Sept. 4-12, and has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.

The uptick in confidence in Congress comes as Democrats are seeking to regain control of the House and Senate in this year’s midterms. Democrats need to win 23 seats to take back the House, and must gain two Senate seats to take the majority there.