Americans' trust in the country's judicial system and courts has fallen to a record 35% this year, according to a new Gallup poll.
In the United States, there has been a 24 percent drop in trust in the justice system over the past four years. This distinguishes the United States from other wealthy countries, where most residents still express confidence in their judicial systems.
The results come after a tumultuous period that included the removal of abortion rights across the country, the indictments against former President Donald Trump and the subsequent withdrawal of federal charges and his attacks on the integrity of the judicial system.
The decline in credibility was not limited to one end of the political spectrum. Confidence fell between people who are satisfied with the country's leadership during Mr. Joe Biden's presidency and those who are not satisfied, according to Gallup. Respondents were not asked about their party affiliations.
It has become normal for people who are not satisfied with the country's leadership to lose at least some faith in the judicial system. However, the 17 percent decline among that group during Mr. Biden's presidency was rapid. Court cases against Mr. Trump were possible factors, according to Gallup.
Among those satisfied with the country's leadership, there was an 18 percent drop between 2023 and 2024, perhaps reflecting dissatisfaction with court decisions favoring Mr. Trump, Gallup reported. Confidence in the judicial system has been above 60% among this group during the first three years of Mr. Biden's presidency, but has declined this year.
Mr. Trump faced four criminal charges this year, but only one case in New York ended in a trial and conviction before he won the presidential race.
Since then, Special Counsel Jack Smith has dismissed his two federal cases, which relate to allegations that Mr. Trump attempted to overturn his 2020 election loss and allegations that he received classified documents at his Mar. -a-Lago, in Florida. A separate state election interference case in Fulton County, Georgia, is pending. President-elect Trump denies all allegations.
Other Gallup polling findings show that Democrats' trust in the Supreme Court fell by 25 percent between 2021 and 2022, the year the Court overturned an earlier abortion decision, returning abortion to the states. to decide for themselves through their individual laws. Their trust rose slightly, to 34%, in 2023, but fell again to 24% this year. The change follows a Supreme Court opinion that Mr Trump and other former presidents have broad immunity from prosecution.
Confidence in the Supreme Court among Republicans, by contrast, reached 71% in 2024.
The judicial system has lost public trust faster than many other American institutions over the past four years. Trust in the federal government, for example, also fell to 26%. That was a 20-point drop, not as big as the drop in confidence in the courts.
The decline in confidence is also large compared to other countries around the world. Only a handful of other countries have had larger declines over a four-year period. They include a 46 percent drop in Myanmar, due to return to military rule in 2021. Venezuela saw a 35 percent drop amid deep economic and political turmoil from 2012 to 2016, and a 28-point drop. in Syria, before and during the first years of the civil war.
The poll was conducted through telephone interviews with nearly 1,000 American adults between June 28 and August 1./Voice of America (A2 Televizion)
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