Poll: Nearly Half of Voters Think Government Officials Are Lying Most or All of the Time

Nearly half of likely voters believe government officials are lying most or all of the time, a Rasmussen Reports survey found.

Likely voters were asked: “When government officials speak, how much of the time are they lying?” Fifteen percent of respondents said government officials are “lying all the time,” while another 33 percent said they are lying “most of the time,” the survey found. 

Another 40 percent of those polled said government officials are lying “some of the time.” Only six percent said officials “rarely” lie, and one percent said they “never” lie, according to the poll report. 

By political affiliation, Republicans (56 percent) are more likely than Democrats (45 percent) and unaffiliated voters (44 percent) to believe government officials are lying at least most of the time.

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

Poll respondents were also asked: “Which of the three branches of the federal government do you trust the most, the Executive Branch, the Congress or the Judiciary? Or do you trust none of the branches of the federal government?” Nearly a quarter (23 percent) of those polled trust the executive branch the most, while 18 percent trust the judiciary branch the most, and 12 percent trust Congress the most. Ultimately, 39 percent of those polled said the do not trust any of the branches of the federal government, the survey found. 

“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,” according to the poll report. 

Again by party, Democrats (38 percent) are more likely than Republicans (11 percent) and unaffiliated voters (18 percent) to trust the executive branch most. Republicans are more likely the trust Congress or the judiciary branch, while unaffiliated voters are more likely to say they do not trust any branches of the federal government.

The survey was conducted with 1,110 U.S. likely voters between July 10-11 and July 14, 2024. The margin of sampling error is ±3 percentage points at the 95 percent level of confidence.