Americans’ confidence in the US judicial system and courts dropped to a record low this year, according to newly released data.
A new Gallup poll, published on Tuesday, reveals that only 35% of Americans surveyed in 2024 expressed confidence in their country’s judicial system and courts – representing a decline of 24 percentage points since 2020, marking one of the largest national level drops for the courts measured globally by Gallup since 2006.
Few countries and territories have experienced larger drops in confidence – speaking in terms of percentage points – in their judiciary systems over a similar four-year period than the US, the poll states.
Among the few countries listed by Gallup are Myanmar, which faced a 46-point decline following its return to military rule in 2021; Venezuela, which saw a 35-point drop between 2012 and 2016 amid economic and political turmoil; and Syria, which experienced a 28-point decline from 2009 to 2013 during the early stages of its civil war.
Between 2006 and 2020, Americans’ perceptions of their country’s courts generally aligned with the median confidence level of the 38 member countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which was 55%.
At the time of Tuesday’s poll release, there was a 20-point gap in confidence between the US and the median of OECD nations, marking the largest gap since Gallup began tracking those trends, the survey states.
During Joe Biden’s presidency, the percentage of individuals disapproving of the country’s leadership lost confidence in the judicial system and courts, dropping from 46% in 2021 to just 29% in 2024.
Among those approving of the country’s leadership, judicial confidence remained steady at 62% from 2021 to 2023 – but experienced a sharp decline to 44% this year.
“This year marks the first time on record that judicial confidence among those approving of US leadership has ever dipped below 60%,” the poll states.
It adds: “And the first time that confidence in the courts has been below 50% among both those who approve and those who disapprove of US leadership, a double whammy pushing the national figure to its lowest in two decades.”
The Gallup survey was conducted through telephone interviews with a random sample of 1,000 US adults from 28 June to 1 August of this year.
The decline in confidence under Biden indicates that “something profound occurred to atypically shake his opponents’ confidence in the courts”, the survey states, “with the various legal cases against Trump likely factors”.
The 18-point drop in confidence in the judicial system between 2023 and 2024 among those who approve of the country’s leadership may also be linked to Trump’s legal cases, the survey states, “reflecting dissatisfaction with several circuit court and supreme court decisions that went in Trump’s favor”.
Trump in May was convicted in New York state court of criminally falsifying business records to cover up hush-money payments to the adult film actor Stormy Daniels. He also grappled with criminal charges stemming from his and his supporters’ efforts to overturn his defeat in the 2020 presidential election to Biden, though many believe it is unlikely he will face substantial consequence having won the presidency back in November’s election.
Previous Gallup surveys have found that Democrats’ trust in the judicial branch, led by the US supreme court, fell 25 points between 2021 and 2022, following the decision in the Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization case, which overturned the federal right to abortion.
In 2023, Democrats’ trust in the court increased slightly to 34% – but it fell again to 24% in 2024, when the supreme court issued a ruling with respect to presidential immunity that was seen as substantially advantageous to Trump.
In contrast, Republicans’ trust in the supreme court increased from 61% in 2021 to 71% in 2024.
English (US)