Poll: Confidence in Congress at an all-time low

Gallup finds that only 10 percent say they have faith in Congress, the lowest for any institution since 1973

Published June 14, 2013 1:32PM (EDT)

A new Gallup poll finds that not only is confidence in Congress at an all-time low at a paltry 10 percent, but that number marks the worst rating for any institution since 1973.

This time around, the poll ranked 16 various institutions, and found that confidence in the military is highest, at 76 percent. The presidency was ranked fifth at 36 percent, and the Supreme Court came in seventh with 34 percent.

From Gallup:

Small business and the police also continue to rank highly, with 65% and 57% of Americans, respectively, expressing "a great deal" or "quite a lot" of confidence in these institutions. Joining Congress at the bottom of the list are Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) and organized labor. Congress' low position is further underscored when one looks at the percentage of Americans who have little or no confidence in each institution. The slight majority of Americans, 52%, have this level of confidence in Congress, compared with 31% for HMOs.


By Jillian Rayfield

Jillian Rayfield is an Assistant News Editor for Salon, focusing on politics. Follow her on Twitter at @jillrayfield or email her at jrayfield@salon.com.

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Congress Gallup Polling U.s. House Of Representatives U.s. Senate